Crescendo
by dimme
Summary: Her music entranced the entire world, but she herself entranced the most dangerous and darkest creature of all time. But would his darkness eventually overshadow her light? SD VampFic. Just gotta love 'em.
1. Emptiness

**A/N:** So it's somewhat corny and somewhat clichéd, but what the heck, I still love it. And I hope you like it toooo! And if you don't... I'm sorry... :(

**WARNING**: Rated **M** for cussing, steamy hot vamp scenes, and just general hotness all around. It's rated M for a reason. I have warned you! So don't complain if you get offended… Instead, just enjoy it ;)

* * *

_**Crescendo **_

Chapter 1: Emptiness

It filled the air, wrapping its delicate tendrils about everyone and everything in the room. Sometimes so sad, it gave one an urge to weep, or so passionate, one could not help but to be filled with the same fervor and feeling. It soared to the rooftops and plunged into the deepest depths, pierced every heart and consumed every soul, left none unaffected.

The music was almost ethereal, the way it seemed to float on the air, its notes lightly floating across the room. So beautiful, so impossibly _perfect_ that it made one wonder how such things were possible, it was… magnificent.

And all the while her fingers flew.

* * *

Serena closed her eyes as she played the last few chords of her most popular piece, _La Votume_. It felt like a piece of her, as if she were not just playing mere music, but baring her own soul.

It was a song that she played without fail every time she performed. She didn't know why, but she just always felt as if she _had_ to. Had to let it out. Had to let everyone hear it. Had to let her soul call out for whatever it ached for.

As she stood up from the bench and the applause and cheering surrounded her, Serena felt as if she were in another world, caught in a half daze, still too consumed to be completely conscious. She'd played this piece countless times, but every time her fingers moved in according to the notes of _La Votume_, whether in concert or in practice, she was left with the same feeling- emptiness.

As to what could fill this emptiness, Serena had no idea. She never even understood why she felt this way. All she could to was play, and hope that someday something would change and would no longer feel this longing for something she didn't understand.

Her mind finally began to clear, the last wisps of the song floating away, until finally she focused on the crowd- their cheers, their whistles, their praises, their tears, and most of all, their smiles. She presented them with a low bow and her curtain of straight silver blond hair fell forward, momentarily covering her face. Straightening, she flashed them a smile and strode off the stage.

The cheers followed after her, until she entered the small dressing room and closed the door, finally letting out the breath of tension that had knotted inside her ever since she first walked onto the stage.

_God I need some candy, _she thought. _I'm pretty sure I still had few lemon drops somewhere… _Digging around the cluttered room, she finally located her purse and rummaged through it.

"Ah ha!" she crowed, pulling out a baggy full of assorted treats, three lemon drops among them. She quickly popped them into her mouth and sighed as the tangy sweetness melted on her tongue.

_Shoot, I better make a dentist appointment soon… Damn cavities..._

If anyone were to claim that the elegant Ms. Serena Delancy, the newly introduced piano prodigy and already one of the most respected musicians in the world, was an honest-to-goodness candy addict, they would've been ridiculed.

She quickly slipped off her velvet black evening gown and groaned with pure pleasure as she stepped out of her four-inch black heels. The heels were a pain, but a necessity nonetheless if she wished to improve her small stature of 5'3". Slipping on a sweater, jeans, and a pair of heavy boots, she pulled on a thick coat and covered her head with the hood. Stuffing the gown and the rest of her things in a garment bag, she grabbed her purse and headed out into the snow, towards the street.

By the time she hailed a cab, loaded her things, and started for home, Serena was thoroughly exhausted. _Damn sugar never lasts long enough, _she thought drowsily. She couldn't wait until she would reach her apartment.

As soon as she entered her small apartment, she stripped off her clothes in trail to her room, toed off her boots, and collapsed on her bed, falling into a deep sleep.

But in another part of the city, in a far larger and much more luxurious room, another stood in front of a huge window, staring out into the night sky and the luminescent moon.

His day had just begun.

* * *

When Serena groggily opened her eyes, the sun was already shining brightly through the windows and the clock's neon green yellow numbers glared at her.

… _One… Thirty-seven… ONE THIRTY-SEVEN!_

"Oh, shit-ake mushrooms_!_" she started to curse, hastily correcting herself. She threw back the covers and jumped out of bed. Her foot slipped on a shirt on the ground and she nearly fell, twisting her foot awkwardly under her. She hobbled to the bathroom, cursing, and all but threw herself into the shower.

She got ready in record time (well, one of her many record times), quickly jammed her feet into her boots, grabbed her bag, and fled out the door.

_It takes nearly 10 minutes to get there by cab…and the metro is too out of the way… Oh what the hell, I'll run for it. _It was an impressive sight, all long legs and billowing silver hair racing like demons were on her tail, that is, if one could actually make out the blurry figure speeding across the crowded sidewalks.

"Oh god, oh god, hurry, hurry, I've got to flippin' _hurry_," she breathed. _She's gonna __**kill**__ me._

_Ten…_

Serena jumped over a small yapping dog and quickly ran into the street to catch the "walk" signal.

_Nine…_

She squeezed between a couple holding hands, ignoring their annoyed and surprised shouts.

_Eight…_

Ducking beneath the shaking hands of two businessmen in front of the entrance she pounced directly into the spinning doors of the Plaza Hotel.

_Seven…_

Ignoring the disgusted and haughty looks of the hotel's wealthier patrons at her disheveled appearance, she raced on.

_Six…_

In mid-run she managed to rummage her cell phone out of her purse.

_Five…_

She quickly checked the time, grimaced, and sped up.

_Four…_

Racing into the restaurant, she sidestepped the maitre' d and just barely avoid a collision with a waiter.

_Three…_

Spotting her target, she charged.

_Two…_

She could just barely grab the chair.

_One…_

She pulled the chair out and was nearly seated.

"Zero."

Serena collapsed into the chair.

"Well done Serena. You're actually, if just barely, on time."

"No. - _huff- _ problem - _puff-._"

Raye Beauchamp looked at her exhausted and worn friend with amusement. "You know, if you would actually wake up on time you wouldn't constantly have this problem."

"I can't help it! I got in late last night and you _know_ how much I need sleep. And ever since I got that new "memory foam" mattress, my bed is like… my lover. So soft and cozy and comfortable and safe…" Serena said dreamily.

"Well before I lose you in your sleep dream world," Raye interrupted dryly, "let me tell you the reason why I wanted to talk to you."

There was a pause. Then she held up a hand, palm facing in.

Her left hand.

Serena's shriek of "SHUT THE FRONT DOOR!" turned nearly every head in the restaurant, and she immediately clapped her hands over her mouth and turned a bright cherry red. "Sorry."

Raye didn't care. Serena could see that her beautiful friend was absolutely glowing with happiness. "But. But. But. When? How? Eh? Damn that thing is BIG."

Raye laughed aloud at her best friend's expression. "Last night, in the park. Oh Serena, it was all just so _wonderful _I can barely contain it all."

" I always did like good ol' Jadeite. Seemed like a sharp boy with good taste," Serena said, winking at Raye. "Have you set a date?"

"No, of course not yet. It's just barely been made official. I just wanted to ask you first off to be my maid of honor."

A second shriek, this time causing the restaurant's more elderly patrons to shake their heads and mutter grumpily.

"Of COURSE! Oh god Raye. You're going to be married! I can't believe it. And to such a great guy." She laughed. "Do you remember when we were younger and we made up those lists of what our dream guys would be like? I remember your list had about 110 different requirements."

"Mm. Yes. A rather paltry amount of requirements compared to YOUR 250."

"What can I say? I'm a very picky person."

"Yes, this coming from the woman who will eat nearly everything one puts on her plate. Very picky indeed."

"Hmph. Food is food. Men are a completely different matter. I just wish that someday I can meet someone and be as happy as you."

They sat there, smiling in a comfortable silence. Serena finally broke the silence when she asked with a sly smile, "So, tell me, does Jed seem to fit all 110 requirements? I do remember you including something about shoe size…"

"Serena!" Raye exclaimed laughingly. Then with a sly smile of her own, she said coyly, "Let's just say Jed fits the bill and _more_." Suddenly her smile faltered slightly. "Although… Jed is also… quite a few other things that were most certainly _not_ on my list…"

"Raye?" Serena asked questioningly.

"Oh, nothing. Just thinking aloud to myself," Raye remarked quickly with a bright smile.

_Rather overly bright, I would say… _Serena thought suspiciously.

Catching the suspicious glint in Serena's eyes, Raye hurriedly moved on. "Well anyways, I was hoping you could come have dinner with Jed and I, along with a couple of Jed's good friends."

Serena, understanding that whatever was bothering Raye was not something she wanted to talk about, got the hint and answered her question. "Sure! I haven't seen Jadeite in awhile. It'll be good to-" she broke off suddenly. "Oh shoot. Wait. I have a concert tonight. I totally forgot."

"Again? Didn't you just have one last night? By the way, how did it go?"

"It went _wonderful_. I had a terrific audience. And yes, I usually don't have back to back performances, but another performer unexpectedly backed out last minute, so as a favor to friend of mine, I decided to fill the empty slot."

"Amy right? The concert hall manager? I still really want to meet her. When will you give me an introduction?"

"I could probably introduce you two tonight. You guys would probably get along great. She's super smart and has the best taste in clothes, not to mention she's always punctual- your dream come true." Serena said jokingly.

"That actually sounds perfect. How about we all come to your performance tonight, then we can all go out to a late dinner afterwards? I know that Jed has been wanting to hear you play for a long time now."

"It's a date! I'll call in and ask for some extra tickets. How many people should I get tickets for?"

"Well, me, Jadeite, and his brothers Nephrite, Zoicite, and Kunzite."

"Woah. And I thought Jadeite was a weird name. What, were they all born to a family of jewelers?"

"No, not born to, but adopted. They're all different ages but it seems that they all grew up together ever since they were young. Oh and I almost forgot his boss, Darien. He should be coming tonight too."

"He's friends with his _boss_? Wow. That's rare."

"Well the five of them are all best friends and work for the same company, with Darien as the CEO and the four others as heads of different departments."

"I see. So then… six extra tickets and afterwards dinner."

"Yup."

"Sounds good." She looked at her watch. "Crap, I have to go and I haven't even eaten yet. I have to go pick up Mina from the airport. She just came back from Tajikistan or some other 'stan'-ish country."

"Mina! I haven't talked to her for almost… Almost a year now! God has it really been that long? How is your cousin doing these days?"

"You know her. Out to save the world as usual. She would've probably come to the concert tonight but she always has horrible jet lag. You'll probably see her sometime soon. She's settling down for a while now and staying with me for the next couple of months."

"That's nice. Tell her I say 'hi'."

"Will do. I have to head out now," Serena said apologetically, as she stood up. "I'll make sure to drop off those tickets to your apartment sometime today. See you tonight!"

"Bye Rena!"

* * *

"Oh come on Darien. Everyone else is coming tonight. I really want you to meet my fiancée. Besides you need to start getting out more anyways."

Not many would dare to argue with a vampire, let alone with a vampire king, but Jadeite considered himself desperate and pissed off enough to give it a try. Not to mention that he was one of the King's closest advisors and friend.

"Jadeite, you already know what my opinion is on your upcoming nuptials. Introducing a completely unknowing human to our world? Not only was it a rash decision but a risky one," Darien said coldly, his face displaying no emotion.

"Raye isn't like that! I would trust her with anything. I love her."

"As I have said many times it is not your affection for the _human_ that I question, but the depth of her own love for you." He fairly spat out the word _human_, as if just the word itself were distasteful. "And even if she may truly love you and can be trusted, what happens when she is revealed to the even darker sides of our world? What happens if hunters capture her? What happens if she refuses to become one of us and dies with age? What happens then?"

Clearly shaken, Jadeite gritted out, "She's my _match_. My mate. That much I know for sure. It doesn't matter what our nature is or how bad things may become. I will protect her with my life. Despite her mortality, Raye has seen me for what I am and has accepted me. And she _has_ agreed to consider risking the change. I can't ask for more. All I ask of you is to accept her as well."

Darien didn't speak. Finally, he let out a breath, the tension in his shoulders leaving as he gave in. "Jadeite, as your friend, I'm glad that you have finally found someone worth living for and I approve of Raye as a mate, but as your king, I just must warn you to be careful. Raye is, no matter what you say or think, a weakness to you and to our race. And weaknesses can be easily exploited. Just take care my friend, or you might end up finding your self completely without any defense."

Jadeite relaxed. "Thank you, my king," he said, bowing respectfully. "Does that mean you'll come later tonight?"

"I'll see what I can do."

* * *

After Serena picked up Mina from the airport and settled her into the guest room, she quickly began to get ready.

_It's so wonderful to see Mina again. Even after all the emails, letters, and phone calls, it's always so great to see her face. _Serena thought fondly as she pulled on her evening gown_. Although she isn't looking too well… Maybe I should schedule a doctor's appointment for her…_

For tonight, she chose a pure white halter that nipped in at her waist and flowed out to the ground. Being completely backless, the dress had thin white ribbons connected to the bodice that held the dress up and tied behind her neck. Serena always felt like twirling whenever she wore the dress, for the material swished and swayed so delicately around her legs that she felt as if she were floating.

She pinned her hair up loosely and finished applying a small amount of makeup, part of the reason being that she had no patience for carefully applying a lot of makeup and also because she had been blessed with clear, smooth skin, and thick eyelashes several shades darker than the color of her hair.

She slipped on a pair of white satin pumps, grabbed her things, and checked on Mina in her room before leaving. Seeing that her exhausted cousin was completely sprawled on the bed, snoring softly, Serena gently closed the door and left.

* * *

"Oh god, oh god. Where _is_ she?"

Amy Wilde was not generally accustomed to being a nervous wreck but with her original scheduled performer having canceled at the very last minute due to an injury, it seemed that with every passing moment, a white hair was popping out amidst her short blue-black hair.

"I'm heeeeeeeeereee!" sang a playful, melodious voice. "And I bet not a moment too soon. You look ready to pass out," Serena joked.

"Oh Serena." Amy collapsed into a chair, her arms and legs akimbo. "Ever so _not_ punctual and still my life saver. I can't thank you enough for doing this for me. Ever since we announced your showing, tickets have been selling like mad! I don't understand why you never perform any large-scale performances or go on a world tour."

"It's simple," Serena said with a shrug. "I hate to fly and I get stage fright with crowds that are too large."

"Right Serena." _You strange woman._ "Anyways, hurry! Your performance begins any moment now!" Amy exclaimed as she frantically ushered Serena towards the stage. "I owe you Serena, major time," she said right before she pushed her out onto the stage.

Serena turned and gave her a quick wink right before she composed herself and walked calmly towards the piano.

And thus sent the audience into heaven.

* * *

Darien was running late. Trouble had come up at work concerning some local property and he wanted to make sure everything would be back to normal before he left.

Checking the platinum watch that adorned his tanned wrist, Darien jogged up the stairs leading to the concert hall. Considering the time, he knew that he would only be able to catch the last few minutes of the pianist.

He knew little of this woman, hearing only random tidbits from Jadeite and every so often through his employees. Apparently while world-renowned, the woman, Serena, preferred to play only to medium-sized to small audiences and performed almost exclusively in New York. While considered a very private and rather eccentric person, her music was acclaimed to be some of the most magnificent pieces of the twenty-first century.

Right. Considering the many centuries he'd lived through, he would judge this Serena person's talent for himself in comparison to some the true piano masters he'd listened to in the past.

He pushed open the heavy double doors that led into the concert hall and stepped in.

_Breathtaking._

* * *

Serena could feel it deep within her heart, something just suddenly filling the normal emptiness. Even as she continued to play _La Votume_, she felt… uplifted. Rather than playing with the normal sad and slow tempo, she reached a crescendo, playing with passion and playing even faster and faster. The effect was amazing. The audience, already awed from the previous movements now felt completely staggered. That such passion and fervor could arise from music, and from such a small and delicate woman… it was extraordinary.

Serena continued to play, not wanting the feeling to end. She had originally composed this piece based on the emptiness she had felt in her heart, but now that something had unexpectedly filled it, it seemed no longer suitable to play a tragic song. Instead, she poured out all her joy, her amazement, and her delight into the final movements.

Across the room, hidden in the shadows of the dimly lit auditorium, Darien focused on the music that was seemingly _poured_ out of the woman in the spotlight. It wrapped around him, consuming him, until he felt something that he hadn't felt in a near millennia- absolute wonder.

It was hard to understand and completely mind-boggling, but somehow the music warmed him, as if he were engulfed in rays of sunlight. Stunned and baffled, his feet unconsciously began to carry him closer. Like a blind man watching the sunrise for the first time, he stared hungrily at the woman's small form. She was very petite and delicately built, her body slim yet full of subtle curves that were made to entice. The backless white dress exposed her smooth, pale skin and Darien felt his fingers curl, as if he just couldn't wait to stroke that creamy expanse. The spotlight left a halo on her silvery hair that was pinned up loosely, as if just waiting to be taken apart by a man's roaming fingers.

He took in a deep breath, as if trying to breathe in her music, her essence… And nearly doubled over in ecstasy. It was sweet, it was spicy, it burned, it soothed. It was absolutely indescribable. He wanted to drown in it, drown in _her_ until he couldn't think anymore.

He shook his head, trying to clear his mind of that addicting scent… It was going to drive him insane. He was already hard as a rock, if his suddenly constricting trousers were any indication.

Darien had desired women before, and pleased scores of them throughout his long lifetime, but _never_ had he felt such an immediate craving and possessiveness for a woman. A _human_ one at that.

She looked like light, salvation… and her sweet scent was a fucking turn-on; like nothing he'd ever experienced. It enticed him to the brink of insanity, yet it soothed him as if it were stroking a calming hand over his back. It was… Fascinating. Alluring.

He wanted to taste her, devour those pink lips that were pressed together in concentration. He wanted to drag his tongue down the length of her smooth, pale neck. He wanted her soft body pressed against his, pressed against his raging arousal. He needed to have her.

Now.

* * *

Serena completed the piece with a flourish, her head thrown back and her fingers poised. She slowly opened her eyes as a smile crept on to her face. Never before had she felt such freedom, such fulfillment, such _completion_. She had no idea what it was that caused such a commotion in her, but whatever it was, she knew she had to find it again.

Taking her bows and smiling at the audience's tremendous ovation, she found Raye and her fiancée sitting in the audience and watched as Raye blew her nose, wiped her teary eyes, and gave Serena a watery smile, her eyes shining with wonder and amazement.

She retreated back behind the stage, where a tearful Amy threw her self into her arms, repeatedly giving her thanks and praises.

"SerenaIdon'," Amy rambled, not even pausing to take breaths between each word.

"Like I said Amy, no problem. Anything for a friend," Serena said warmly. "Besides, tonight was… I don't know why, but tonight just felt special. I should be thanking _you_," she added rather dreamily.

She missed Amy's slightly puzzled look as Serena glided into the dressing room and gently closed the door.

* * *

Lightly humming to herself and playfully swaying her body in a mock-dance, Serena smiled contently as she recalled the euphoria she had felt earlier. Too absorbed in her thoughts, she didn't even notice when suddenly out of nowhere, a tall, dark man appeared in her room; until in mid-twirl she slammed into a large, hard body.

She barely had enough time to suck a breath to scream before firm lips were molded against hers. She immediately began to struggle, pounding on the man's firm chest and attempting to knee him in the crotch, just like her uncle taught her long ago, but to no avail. Her assailant merely wrapped muscular arms around her waist and arms, pressing her firmly against his own long, hard body, keeping her completely imprisoned. She opened her mouth to snap her teeth at that sinfully skilled mouth but he merely took advantage of the situation and slipped his tongue inside, instantly dispersing all rational thoughts from her head and flooding her senses with an unexpected rush of primitive desire.

_I really should've put up more of a fight_, she thought vaguely, before she closed her eyes and completely melted.

* * *

He didn't know what compelled him to act so rashly, but he sure as hell wasn't regretting his decision now. Darien could tell the instant Serena surrendered; felt her body go limp against his. He deepened the kiss, slanting his mouth and savoring each and every delectable flavor of her mouth. His arms loosened and his hands began to roam over her body, caressing that smooth back just like he had imagined.

_Sweet, so perfectly sweet… All mine… _He couldn't deny it, no matter how impossible it seemed. After tasting her, experiencing her essence, he knew that the impossible had occurred- he'd found her. His missing half. His mate.

He'd long ago given up on the idea of ever finding his mate, deeming himself too dark and undeserving. Century after century, women came and went, and Darien could've cared less. He would've relegated the idea of "a vampire's one true mate" as a fairytale myth, had he'd not seen and met mated vampires himself. Instead, he gave up on the idea of ever finding that completion, and had painfully come to terms with it - that he, while more powerful than any other, would always be alone. He accepted it as his punishment, one fit for someone as ruthless as him.

And now that it was happening so suddenly, it still didn't seem possible. He could barely wrap his mind around the fact that this beautiful woman in his arms, so warm and sweet smelling, was _made_ for him. That she had already fitted herself into the empty space of his soul, and he couldn't imagine a more perfect yet baffling feeling. That in a span of a few minutes, they'd already shared a lifetime.

A single word flickered in his mind, but disappeared, too delicate to completely bloom.

Her body fit perfectly with his, as if they were two puzzle pieces that melded together. Her soft belly cuddled his hard-on and he groaned when she writhed against his body. "_Serena_," he whispered against her mouth.

His deep, husky voice finally penetrated Serena's foggy and lust-clouded mind, her body still vibrating with intense arousal. Realizing that her own arms were wrapped around the stranger, her eyes flew open and she shoved herself away. But his arms trapped her like steel bands, even while embracing her so gently, and she only succeeded in breaking the kiss, her palms flat against his chest and her back bent over his arms.

The man slowly opened his eyes, revealing a pair of deep, midnight blue eyes, still slightly glazed over with desire. He smiled languorously, revealing straight white teeth, his tongue slipping out to lick his lips, as if savoring over the taste that lingered there.

_God, he's freakin' gorgeous… But a crazy person! What is going on? He looks familiar… _ His face was something to be heralded, or at least made immortal by marble. With that thick, glossy black hair that tumbled around a sinfully handsome face and his perfectly symmetrical features, dark blue eyes, and a body fit for a god, he was the stuff of a woman's most erotic dreams. It'd be hard to forget a face like that.

_And that mouth… He should be made illegal, considering that his tongue is absolutely lethal. Ah! What are you thinking? You don't even know his name, why he's here, and why the __**hell **__were you just involved in a major make-out sesh with him! _The rational part of her brain scolded her. Still entranced, frightened, and aroused, she then watched as those perfectly shaped lips began to speak.

"Hello, angel."

Serena shivered as his deep, sexy voice ran up her spine. She lifted her gaze from his tempting mouth and stared into fathomless blue-black eyes, eyes that trapped her in its depths. His arms had loosened around her, with one hand pressed against the small of her back, and the other softly stroking her up and down her spine. Slowly, dazedly, she framed his face with her hands as she continued to stare searchingly into his eyes. As his head slowly lowered, she felt her eyes flutter shut and her face reach up to meet his. She heard him whisper softly right before his lips captured hers.

"_Mine_."

_Um. What?_


	2. Until You

**A/N:** Oh reviewers make me so happy… And I promise to try and update as often as possible, but I make no promises… I'm really not that prompt. :D. Yea, so this fic is rated "M" for a reason. There's a considerable amount of cussing and suggestiveness, not to mention scenes far beyond just "suggestions". Well, not in this chapter, but sooner or later. So be warned! If that bothers you, I suggest you stop reading right: Here.

But anyways, lots of Serena/Darien interaction here. Yay! They're so cute.

* * *

_**Crescendo **_

Chapter 2: Until You

_"Mine"? _Her eyes flew open, and she immediately broke off (_aw, dang_) the kiss. _Who the fudge does this guy think he is? _thought an outraged Serena, her insides in a turmoil but her face devoid of any emotion and reaction. Then suddenly, a slow, sultry smile slid (look at that alliteration!) onto her face.

"Yours? _Reaaaally_…" she purred, rubbing her body seductively against his. Pupils dilating, his eyes darkened even further in response, turning a near black as his hands grabbed her hips, grinding his lower body into hers.

_Whoa… Down girl. Actually, it's probably more like down, dooooooown boy. _

"Yes, _mine_… Why? Do you find the idea… appealing?" he responded huskily, his mind and body falling under the spell of her beguiling blue eyes.

She slid up his body, until she stood on the very tips of her toes, and even still she just barely made it up to his chin. Caressing his back lightly, she whispered seductively, "As a matter of fact…" Pausing, she grabbed his (_oh god… the torture_) hard ass.

Darien groaned, ready to tear off her thin dress and just claim her on the dressing room floor, and satisfy his burning need.

"…I _don't_!" Taking advantage of his distracted state, Serena slammed her knee upward, aiming right for his groin.

Only to be blocked again.

But Serena was a quick learner and quickly retaliated by jumping up and slamming her head right into that perfectly shaped nose.

And saw stars.

"_Fuck_, woman, are just _trying _to give yourself a concussion!"

_That doesn't sound a lot like a man who should be groaning in agony and rolling around on the floor in pain, _Serena thought dazedly, grabbing her aching forehead. _Shit, my head hurts like no other. How the _hell _Jean Claude Van Dam manages to do that so often, I have no idea. He must be brain dead by now._

Woozily, Serena began to slightly sway. Cursing, Darien lifted her up effortlessly into his arms and gently placed her on the small couch in the dressing room.

_Shit, shit, __**shit**__. This is __**not**__ what's supposed to be happening. He should be on the ground, incapacitated, groaning and moaning, and begging for mercy._

"Are you all right? I must tell you, it won't do you any good to attack me. I'm near impossible to kill. Trust me, it's been attempted numerous times," Darien said sardonically.

"_Kill _you? I don't want to _kill _you. Although I can understand why several people might try to. I just want to know who the _fuck_ you are and what the hell you're doing in my room. And why you… er… _assaulted _me," hissed Serena, holding her aching (_and probably bruised by now_, she thought disdainfully) head.

He grinned devilishly and his expression instantly turned amused, his eyes glittering mischievously. "Assaulted, eh? Then it seems it rather you enjoy being… _assaulted_."He finished the word suggestively.

_That bastard_, she thought darkly. "Bite me," she spat out.

His beautiful eyes widened slightly for a moment and an emotion that she couldn't recognized flickered swiftly across his face, before quickly being replaced with that same heavily aroused look.

"Oh, _gladly_. Just tell me where," he purred seductively.

"Oh you _insufferable_ -. Ugh. Never mind. Move out of my way. I'll give you 3 seconds to get out of my room before I call security," she growled. "Better yet, you can just wait here till security comes and takes you away, preferably into a padded, soundproof cell," she added sweetly.

"Oh trust me angel, _no one_ is going to take you away from me. Like I said, you're _mine_, and I happen to be rather possessive."

"Will you cut it out with that '_mine' _crap? You're flippin' crazy! I'm nobody's, and I sure as heck will never be yours!" Serena yelled furiously. "Besides, I don't even know who you are!"

"Darien Shields. But after our… _meeting, _I think we ought to be on a first name basis by now; don't you agree, _Serena_?"

The fear came belatedly, it's icy fingers just beginning to crawl up her spine as the reality of her situation finally hit her in the face. A big, enormously strong (if that little incident with his nose was any indication), potentially dangerous man alone with her, in a rather small room- not exactly a very comforting scenario. He was a complete stranger who knew her name (she'd conveniently forgotten the fact that this was _her_ concert and that the advertisements had her name written all over it) and was either a total weirdo or just delusional.

Feeling more than just a tad uneasy with her predicament, Serena decided that since yelling at this, this, _Darien_ didn't seem to do any good, and acting seductive only made her (it killed her to admit it) horny, she would try a different route.

_Okay, time for the sneaky approach…Mr. Sex-God-who-doesn't-know-the-meaning-of-personal-space, prepare yourself! _she thought deviously.

Darien watched his silver-haired angel with suspicion. Serena was a complete enigma, a chameleon, constantly changing her colors right before his very eyes. On stage she was a graceful swan, her movements as smooth and soothing as a caress. In the dressing room, she danced and twirled like a 5 year-old playing in her mother's swishy skirt. In his arms she was a raging and spitting cat one moment, and then in the next, an alluring temptress that aroused him until he was on the brink of pain. And now… and now he watched as she seemed to deflate of all anger and steam, leaving her lying completing relaxed and still on the couch, with him still hovering over her.

Her beautiful clear eyes started to fill slightly with tears, and Darien caught the slightest hint of fear in their endless depths. Those pouty, swollen lips began to slightly tremble… those beautiful, sexy, red lips that he had just nearly consumed and could easily imagine wrapped around his-

"Okay, fine. Darien?"

His name whispered tremulously from the very lips that he was fantasizing about broke his train of thoughts (and in the nick of time). But he couldn't help losing focus. Just one thought of that slim, perfectly curvy body wrapped around his or those bewitching eyes that reeled him in had the ability to remove all thoughts from his head and rush all the blood to his cock.

And that just wouldn't do at all.

Born a leader and raised to be a King, Darien prided in himself at his ability to keep a cool and rational head when all others seemed to be in an utter state of chaos. He could kill without a thought and topple cities with a single order, yet this _human_, the bottom of the food chain for his kind and a very small, petite one at that, had the ability to strip him completely of all his control, not to mention all rational thoughts.

A mere human, but dangerous nonetheless.

"Darien?" Serena whispered softly again. "Please… Would you let me up? I promise not to run. I just would prefer to stand… Please…" She lifted teary eyes to his and gently touched his cheek with the palm of her hand.

"I'd rather not. I rather like the position you're in- flat on your back, below me. Makes things so much more… convenient," he added wickedly.

Her "teary" eyes blazed for the briefest moment. Then resumed with their pleading, frightening looked. _Ah ha. So this is the game she insists on playing_.

"Please D-Darien." She thought the stutter was a nice touch. "I would really appreciate it. Understand my situation. One moment, I'm standing alone in my room, the next, some random, mysterious man has grabbed me and is kissing me. I don't even know who you are! And you're saying that I'm 'yours'? I just… I don't understand what's going on." It wasn't even a lie - it was pretty much how she felt. But perhaps adding the occasional bravely-contained-yet-still-managed-to-escape-sob and the I'm-really-trying-hard-not-to-burst-into-tears-hiccup was a bit much.

His face gave away no emotion; he didn't even bat an eye at her teary explanation. Time to take it up a notch.

"Plus, I just can't stand being caged in like this. Ever since I got trapped in an elevator when I was younger, I've always been rather claustrophobic." she lied smoothly. _Careful, don't over do it…_

"Really? How terrible."

So apparently, his mate was not only incredibly sexy, but the little vixen was an accomplished liar too. A lesser man would've probably fallen immediately under the spell of her soft voice, and god knows Darien was struggling with himself as it was, but one did not become king of the most powerful species alive only to succumb to teary eyes and a pleading voice.

Although it was damn tempting.

"You're right. I've been thoughtless. Forgive me," Darien said apologetically.

"That's all right, this whole situation is rather strange after. Now if you'll just move aside-" Serena got cut off when Darien unexpectedly interrupted her.

"We'll go to my house. It's much more larger than this… closet."

"_WHAT! _No! Wait! Stop! _HEL-_"

Her voice was cut off when suddenly her vision went black.

* * *

Raye was starting to get worried.

Serena was supposed to meet her and the rest of the group in front of the entrance… _Ten minutes ago. Eh, it's probably nothing. Considering that it's Serena, she's just probably running late again because she broke a heel or tore her dress or something._

"What's wrong, love?" Jadeite asked, feeling concerned upon seeing the worried look on his fiancée's face. He stepped behind her and wrapped his arms around her.

Loving the warmth and security, Raye leaned back onto his chest, taking comfort in the protection of his arms. "I'm sure it's nothing. Serena's just running late again. If she doesn't come out soon, we should probably go looking for her."

"Have you tried calling her cell?"

"Yes, but it's turned off. I just keep getting her voicemail."

"Well, we're in no hurry. We can stand to wait a little bit more. Considering that we made the dinner reservations in Darien's name, the reservation will hold."

Raye laughed. "Yea, with that, they'd probably also clear out the rest of the people, keep the restaurant open the entire night, and be ready to serve your every beck and call as well."

"Thus is the power of a name." He leaned down and began to gently nibble at his lover's neck. "Raye... have you given any thought to my… request?"

She stiffened. "Honestly… I just don't know yet." She turned around, still encompassed by his arms and placed both palms gently on Jadeite's cheeks. Gazing deeply into his eyes, she said, "You know that I love you, and what I want more than anything is to be with you… but this is so shocking, so sudden. A vampire… just saying it sounds unbelievable. And once I realized that it's the truth, it's reality; that vampires actually _do_ exist… I just… God, Jadeite. I don't know." She broke off.

"It's all right, I understand. I don't want to pressure you," he said, lovingly stroking a hand over her raven black mane of hair. "I just don't want to risk losing you."

"I know, it's just… I mean it's not like I'm squeamish or anything. I am, after all, a surgeon, and have to deal with plenty of gruesome things and am exposed to blood daily… But… My friends, my family… What do I tell them? To never see the sun again, to live to see my family, their children, their children's children _die. _How do I deal with it all?"

"Well, you _will_ eventually be able to be exposed to sunlight later…"

"Yes, after about half a millennium," she said sarcastically. Then, she sighed. "I'm sorry Jadeite. I don't mean to be snippy, but it's a big decision… I just need more time to think about it." She lifted her downcast eyes. "It'd help if I could talk to Serena about this," she said hopefully.

"I'm sorry my love, you know that isn't possible. To expose another to our world… It's dangerous, for us, and especially for them."

She sighed. It was a long shot anyways. "Okay, just wait a little longer then. But I promise, you'll have my answer within the week."

"Alright, I can't ask for more. Just you being here is a miracle as it is."

* * *

Looking down the neatly spaced rows and columns, Amy ran through her "closing time" to-do list, making sure that the auditorium was ready to be closed for the night. Going backstage, she noticed that the light in makeup room, the room that Serena was in, was still on.

_Hmm… She still hasn't left. How odd. It's well past closing time_. Approaching the door, she softly rapped her knuckles on the wood. "Serena? You in there? Is everything okay?"

No answer.

"Serena?" she repeated, confused. "Can I come in?" Still no answer.

Curious as to what was wrong, she opened the door slowly and popped her head in, only to see… Nothing. _That's odd. Her purse and clothes are still here, but she's nowhere to be seen!_ Stepping inside, she grabbed Serena's stuff, turned off the lights, and closed the door. _Being her, she probably just forgot to grab her stuff and left in such a hurry that she didn't even realize it. I'll just stop by her apartment tomorrow and drop off her stuff._ And that was that.

If only.

* * *

Serena groggily attempted to open her eyes, confused as to what happened. _Am I at home? Did I just somehow manage to get home and fall asleep or something? How strange… _

She shifted, and was startled to feel the sleek smoothness of silk on her bare legs.

_Silk sheets? I don't have silk sheets… Unless the cotton somehow just transformed… But this bed… Oh god, it's even better than mine… No, wait! Focus! Where am I?_

She opened her eyes and rubbed at them, trying to adjust to the dark lighting. Suddenly, she caught a whiff of a familiar scent from the pillow.

_Mmmm… Smells good. All manly and sexy. I wish- WAIT A FLIPPIN' MINUTE!_

Her memory came back to her in a rush, as it always did right after waking up. A slow starter, it always took Serena several moments to shake off sleep and to retain all coherent thoughts.

_That, that, crazy guy! Shields! Darien Shields! He kissed- I mean assaulted me! What? Did he drug me too? Am I at his house? Oh god, what do I do?_

_**Hopefully get kissed some more, if you're lucky… Yummy…**_ the hormonal side of her purred.

_Agh! No! Stop!_

_**Oh come on… Admit it, the man is a sex god… That mouth… those hands… that **_**body. **_**Not to mention some of his other considerable… assets. One of which **__**you**__** grabbed. You know you enjoyed it…**_

_That doesn't change the fact that he's a complete stranger! A serial killer for all I know! And that was just to distract him!_

"I wonder," rumbled a deep voice from a dark corner, "if you're aware of how many different emotions your face can hold at the same time. It's rather fascinating."

_Oh god, no._

_**Oh GOD, yes!**_

* * *

Darien carefully watched Serena's face in the dark, amused at the sporadic play of different emotions that passed through her beautiful face upon his revealing. He enjoyed watching her sleep, seeing her alluring breasts rise and fall with each breath, her stomach slightly concave. She looked completely at peace and relaxed during sleep, emphasizing her angelic features. Her white-blond hair and pale skin contrasted sharply with his pure black silk sheets, making her seem as if glowing.

"What the fuck am I doing here?"

But he enjoyed her fire even more.

Grinning, he casually stuck his hands into his pockets and strolled over to her. "Why, we're talking, at my house. Besides, isn't that what you wanted. To be in a bigger room, due to your… phobia?"

"My- what? What the hell are- Oh. Yes, my- I mean, no. I mean yes. Oh fudge it. You know that wasn't what I meant!" she snapped.

"It was my understanding that being in such a small room with me was bringing back your childhood fears of enclosed spaces, due to your unfortunate incident with an elevator. Therefore, I brought you to my home. I trust it is enough space for you?" he asked smoothly, not choking over her many lies.

Enough space? The entire room was probably the size of her entire apartment, considering the fact that the bed alone was as large as her kitchen. Covered with luxurious black silk sheets, the bed was like a lake, with scattered pillows and large, ornate lamps on top of antique bed stands on either sides of the bed. Looking down, she finally noticed what she was wearing.

Another outraged shriek was ready to emerge when Darien cut in smoothly, "I thought that the peach color looked good on you. I hope it is to your taste."

"To my-" she stopped, and drew in a deep shuddering breath. Calming herself to the best of her abilities, Serena tamped down on her fury and worse, her fear. _Be angry. Be calm. It's safer_. "As a matter of fact, it isn't. Where are my clothes? This-" she motioned to the slinky peach colored teddy, "was not what I was wearing before."

"I had assumed that the dress would've been bothersome while you slept. Being so, I took the liberty of slipping something more… comfortable on."

"Would you please stop that? It's annoying," Serena said coldly, masking her fear. _He __**undressed**__ me? Oh god. What if he drugged me and did stuff to me that I didn't even realize?_ She wondered, horrified, and not wanting to elaborate her thinking on the "stuff."

"Stop what?"

"Those annoying little pauses. You know, 'after our…_ meeting_', 'makes thing so much more… _convenient_', 'something more… _comfortable_'," she mimicked with exaggeration. "If you have something to say then just say it. Stop with the annoying innuendos."

Something dangerous and not at all playful glinted in Darien's dark blue eyes and instantly made Serena regret her words. "You have a very good memory," Darien said softly. "So then, would you have preferred that I had said 'after we all but ripped each other's clothing off', 'makes it easier for me to fuck you', or 'something that shows off your sexy little body' sans those 'annoying little pauses'?" he finished in low dangerous growl.

_Whuh._ Serena let out a breath. "No," she squeaked stupidly. She winced. "No," she said more strongly, clearing her throat. "And I would appreciate it if you wouldn't be so crude and would just tell me flat out who you are and what I'm doing here."

"As I said, I am Darien Shields, and you, my dear, are here because this is where you belong."

She froze. _Darien Shields…_The name sounded familiar to her now, unlike before, when she had been too shocked and startled to think about it. _Darien, Darien… Where have I heard that name before?_

As if he read her mind, Darien added, "You may have heard of me from your friend Raye - I'm Jadeite's boss."

"You're _that_ Darien?" _The über rich, mysterious, powerful, and evidently psycho one?_ _Oh fudgsicle. It __**is**__ all just like some sort of novel. Where are those smelling salts when you need them? And what is Raye doing, being associated with these maniacs?_ "Well um, it's nice meeting you and all… I'm sure this whole _situation_ is just some weird misunderstanding… I'm pretty sure I **don't** belong here, so if you'll just return my clothing, I'll go home and we can just pretend this, this **thing** just never happened," she said, proud that her voice remained calm and didn't betray the emotions churning inside her stomach.

He looked hesitant for a moment, and Serena felt a flash of hope that he would just let her go.

_**And miss out on more kissy time? Nooooo…**_

_Shut it, you!_

"This isn't a misunderstanding, nor is it a mistake. No one is playing a joke on you and I am not mentally unstable or under the influence of any substance. Do you understand?" He spoke to her slowly, calmly, his eyes never leaving hers for a moment. When she didn't respond, he continued, "I know you don't understand what is going on, but know that I'm not here to hurt you. It may take you some time to adjust and believe the things I am going to tell you, but this is truly where you belong. Here, with me."

She gaped at him, not caring that she probably looked ridiculously like a goldfish. "Uhhhh…."

"I'm not done. You see, I am-" He broke off abruptly, agitated and running his hands through his hair. This was the first time Serena had seen him break his cool, that calm façade which seemed to be permanently imbedded. It made her feel a teensy better, as it just made him seem more _normal_.

"Who am I kidding… A human, a fucking _human_!" He muttered under his breath, pacing the room. "After all this time, out of all the species…" He let out a sharp bark of laughter.

"Am I missing something here? Because last time I checked, _you're_ a human too," she sniffed, offended at his disparaging tone of voice.

He stopped his pacing and caught eyes with her. It was like sinking into a black hole, a place where there was no time and space, just a void of nothingness. Slowly, like a predator stalking a particularly tasty looking morsel, Darien began to walk back towards her again. "You'd best check again angel, because I'm far from it."

Alright, she'd humor him. Crossing her arms, she arched an eyebrow. "Oh really? Then please, tell me, exactly what do kidnappers fall under as? Sub-human? Neanderthals?" She looked him up and down (and grudgingly admired his hotness). "You may be crazy, but you're still human."

"Try vampire."

Silence.

Silence.

Crickets chirping.

Slowly, the corners of her mouth turned up, lips quivering as if she were desperately trying to hold it in.

Her smile made him catch his breath. Her eyes, already a sky blue, seemed to light up even more. _Her smile, her smile, her smile. _

He felt ridiculous, like some sappy fool. He couldn't, wouldn't get sucked into these feelings warming his chest. It wasn't… rational. Emotions like these could break a man. But then Serena started to laugh, and he had to forcefully use all his many years of training and control to rein in the overwhelming temptation to smile helplessly back.

Still laughing, Serena managed to stutter, "O-o-oh reallyyyy?" giggle "Yes, t-t-that s-s-s-sounds _much_ more reasonable" giggle giggle. Honestly, she felt a lot better now - still worried about Darien's sanity, but not scared shitless like before. It probably wasn't the smartest idea to laugh at a potentially insane kidnapper, but _seriously_? How could she help it? After a few moments of Serena nearly dying of laughter, and Darien just staring at her with a blank look on his face, she wiped her tears away and finally noticed that Darien… wasn't laughing.

"You can't be serious," she said disbelievingly. "I mean I know I called you crazy… but you can't seriously think you're a- a- vampire. That's just beyond craziness and borderline institutional."

He heaved a great, dramatic sigh. "Yes, I _am_ serious. And not only that, I happen to be the current reigning King. It's a terrible job, but someone's got to do it."

"You-" she began, but didn't finish as she barely swallowed a scream in her throat as Darien seemingly appeared out of thin air right next to the bed, one knee on the mattress, his arms caging her in against his pillows. _What. The. Fuck. Just. Happened? _Her racing heart felt ready to burst from her chest. "How did you… Please, this can't be right. What are you talking about? Vampires do NOT exist! That's all myth and delusion. You can't possibly be serious!" With his face this close to hers, she realized that his eyes weren't black or dark brown, but the darkest navy blue - like a starless night sky.

"Oh but I am. Darien Shields, undead King, ruler of the shadow creatures, a master and elder vampire. And I also kick ass at Jenga," he added seriously.

"Well, that just all make sense. The dark, foreboding presence, the mausoleum of a room. A Vampire King. Of course." Serena ended the sentence on a slightly hysterical note. _Oh man. I am so screwed. I'm stuck with one of those crazy Twilight fans. He probably douses his skin with glitter too._

He just watched her with those cool, unfathomable eyes. "As expected, I see that you find it hard to believe. I figured no less from a human - they're so predictably close-minded." He ignored her outraged "Hey!" and finished, "Very well, I shall just have to show you."

Serena watched, half horrified, half dazed as Darien held up his index finger, and continued to watch as the fingernail slowly extended and sharpened until it became a single razor sharp claw.

"Wha? You. I. I. But."

He wasn't done quite yet. He lightly dragged his finger (_claw_?) over his black shirt, and the fabric split as if being torn in half. Pausing, he looked up and stared into her eyes. Without breaking eye contact, he raked his finger over his chest, right over his heart. Serena cried out, horrified at the blood dripping steadily from the deep wound.

"Stop it! What the hell are you doing?" she shouted, breaking into a sweat at the sight of blood and already scrambling to get up, only to become tangled in the sheets. Abruptly, her shouts stilled, as she stared at his chest with a dismayed sort of fascination. His skin had swiftly begun to knit back together, right before her very eyes. The entire wound had healed in a matter of seconds, until the smooth, golden skin was as perfect and as unblemished as before, only marked by a thin line of blood. Its smell still hung in the air, making her feel nauseous, yet there was no wound to accompany it.

She looked back into those impossibly colored navy eyes, trying to discern an ounce of understanding, some sort of reasoning for what had just happened. _Impossible_…

"What are you?" she whispered. Her brain couldn't process what her eyes had seen. It simply didn't make any sense. As if she were stuck in some sort of bizarre dream, Serena felt trapped and dazed.

"I already told you, I am a vampire," he said with a hint of impatience.

"_No_…" she whispered. She rapidly shook her head. "This doesn't- this can't- No! Just go away. Just GO AWAY!" Serena felt like she was five again, when she was plagued with bloody nightmares and monsters who hid in the dark. So she did what she did back then - threw the covers over her head, shut out the world and prayed to god that this was all just a dream that she would wake up from very soon.

* * *

Darien had no idea it would, no, _could_ hurt so deep. The wound on his chest was of no consequence- indeed, it felt like hardly more than a pinch, but the look of disgust and horror that his mate had given him when he revealed his true nature had been a slice through his heart, deeper than any mortal wound a weapon could inflict.

_"Just GO AWAY!"_ Her words were still ringing in his ears.

_The hell with that,_ he snarled. _She's mine, my queen: now, tomorrow, and forever. After all these years, this hell, it's my fucking right to take what is rightfully mine._

_**But she'll probably never forgive you**__,_ a little voice niggled in the back of his head.

_She'll learn; she'll adjust. I'll make sure of it. _

* * *

When Serena came to again, she awoke without her usual grogginess and foggy mind. With a heavy heart, she took in her elegant surroundings. _So it wasn't just a dream. Well eff my life._

Quietly (and regretfully) slipping out of the soft, luxurious bed, she carefully wandered around the bedroom and with a relieved sigh concluded that Darien wasn't in there. She walked over to the heavy drapes covering the large windows and cautiously peered through.

"Oh. My. Freaking. God."

It was absolutely beautiful. The sun was shining over the fresh snow over a large expanse of land. It was sprinkled on top of the many trees and Evergreens that were strategically planted in way to conceal the large walls and imposing looking gate. Like some sort of picture-perfect winter wonderland, the clean snow sparkled and the sky was completely clear, a rare feat for New York during the winter season.

She quickly tied back all the large, heavy drapes, flooding the room with sunlight. Basking in its warm rays, she opened the large glass doors, cleared the patio of any remaining snow, and stepped out. Shivering, she admired the view. The mansion, no, castle was probably a better word was large, impressive and surprisingly charming. While lacking the telltale high towers that would undoubtedly keep Rapunzel captive, the grand stone fortress had quite a few peaks and turrets that made Serena itch to go and explore. She could see the hibernating vines that crawled up thickly along the walls and could imagine how beautiful the flowers were when they bloomed in the springtime. All of it was fit for a-

_King. Oh god. I can't believe I forgot about this nightmare. Vampires! They actually exist! I can't believe it. Darien Shields! An undead Vampire King. Somebody wake me up from this ridiculous nightmare._

No longer feeling safe and secure out in the open, Serena hastily stepped back and shut the doors. Looking around the room, she finally was able to see the details of the huge and expensively furnished room. Considering that the large four poster bed and with its heavy drapes hanging down, took up most of the space in the room, Serena was surprised to see that the room also fit an impressive television, stereo, and electronics set, a large dresser, a door she presumed to be the closet, and an armoire. There was also a large fireplace roaring away, which was probably why the room was so nice and toasty.

Then she caught sight of the large bookcase next to it, and all but began to drool. She quickly walked over to the huge built in bookcase and lovingly ran her fingers over the well-worn binds. She was sorely tempted to choose a favorite or two of hers and settle down into the large, plushy sofa opposite the bookcase. She was already pulling a book out of the shelf when she caught herself. _What do you think you're doing? You need to get out of here!_ She berated herself._ Well, first off, my clothes…_

Hunting around the room but seeing no sign of any of her possessions, she gave up and headed over to the closet. _Well, no doubt about it, this must be Darien's room. Only his closet would have this much black clothing. Jeez, this closet would make all the supermodels in the world green with envy. _Heading down the many rows and columns of neatly folded pants, shirts, shoes, and towards the more casual clothing, she finally managed to extract a pair of jeans, a belt, and a plain sweater.

Even cinching the belt as tight as she could around her waist and with the cuffs rolled up several times, the pants still threatened to slip off and the sweater was so large that the shoulders nearly came down to her elbows. _Oh well, it's better than creeping around in that flimsy scrap of silk._ His shoes were entirely too large for her so she just slipped on a pair of warm woolen socks.

Testing the large oak doors, she discovered to her delight that they weren't locked. _He's either really careless or just really confident. Somehow, I don't think it's the former._

She tiptoed silently across the long, impressive looking hallway. She was about to give up on finding an exit when finally; she came upon a grand staircase which led to a marbled foyer. _Oh, freedom_! She raced down the long, sweeping staircase and headed for the humongous double doors when suddenly, her socks slipped on the polished floor and she fell with a large bang, rapping her elbow and butt on the floor.

"Ow…" she mourned painfully, carefully standing back up and rubbing her afflicted areas.

"Well now, I'd be happy to kiss it and make it feel better," said an all-too-familiar voice from directly behind her.

_Oh man. Caught. Damn it. _

Today, in an instant, Darien had learned of two new emotions: terror and fear. Terror that Serena had severely injured her fragile, easily broken, mortal body from the fall and fear that she was going to leave him and he'd never get her back. Fortunately, her fall was a minor one and the ruckus she made was actually what had woken him up from his light sleep. Using his shifting powers, he able to instantly bring himself to Serena, relieved to see that she was okay.

"What the- How did you do that? You weren't even around here! And how are you able to stand the sunlight? Aren't you supposed to be deep fried and crispy by now?" asked a startled Serena.

"One of my acquired abilities is Shifting, meaning I can instantly transport myself anywhere, anytime, so long as I've been there before. And being a few thousand years old, my powers have grown to the extent in which I've managed to become relatively immune to the burning effects of the sun, although it will cause me to tire more easily. So I'm assuming this means you believe me now?"

Her head still spinning from this new amazing discovery, she almost missed the part about his age. "Wait just a fudging minute. A few thousand years old? How old exactly are you?" she asked incredulously.

"About 2,700 years old. I lost track after the first millennium. And you didn't answer my question. You believe me? And accept what I am?"

But Serena was still feeling rather dazed. "Oh my god. Two thousand and seven hundred years old..." her voice trailed off.

More roughly than he meant to, Darien took Serena by the shoulders and shook her. "Serena. _Answer me_. Do you accept what I am?"

"Take your hands off me!" she snapped, quickly recovering from her daze. "You're hurting me."

His hands lost a considerable amount of pressure but she was still firmly under his grasp. "Well?" he questioned, a touch more desperately than he would've liked. He had no idea why, but having her admission and acceptance meant everything to him, and right now, he just had to have the answer.

"Well it's not like I have a fucking choice here. You grew claws, gave yourself a mortal wound, completely healed almost immediately, can transport distances instantly… All I haven't seen are your fangs," she said rather testily. "So, what, if I say 'no', you're just going to say 'oh, all right then. I'm actually _not_ a vampire. Have a nice life' and pop out of here with that 'shifting' ability of yours? I think that if I don't accept what you are, I'm going to have to admit that I've gone completely delusional and check myself into the nearest insane asylum a.s.a.p."

"You have accepted me." He said it as a statement, not a fact.

"Yeeeessss… That's what I said. Sorta." She was really confused. What was the big deal?

For a moment no one spoke. Then, moving too quickly for Serena to react, he gathered her close into his arms and hugged her. Simply hugged her.

How do you describe love, hope, happiness? Perhaps they all described each other in themselves. He couldn't understand it, couldn't fathom it, but somehow he was beginning to grasp their meanings.

"You have accepted me." He said it as a statement, not a fact. "And I accept you, a thousand times over."

They were just words, but they held a weight that Serena didn't understand.

Accepted.

Accepted as what? It was a thought she didn't dwell on for long, as he interrupted her musings.

"So you want to see my fangs?" Darien said thickly, his eyes darkening oh-so-familiarly.

Serena could feel her heart thumping wildly and her pulse racing as she watched his sharp canines elongate and extend. _And the final piece of the puzzle. The whole 'I vant to dreenk your blooooood'_. Surprisingly, Serena felt no fear, no panic at what she knew was coming. Just an overwhelming sense of lust, desire, and contentment. Rather odd, considering that Darien had assaulted- okay, no, she'd admit it- kissed her, drugged her (she assumed), and kidnapped her. But still, she found that she rather trusted him, despite what he was and what he did. Or perhaps she was just deluding herself because she just really, really wanted to kiss him again.

Darien bent down closer, intoxicated by her scent and her pulse. He couldn't wait to feel her lifeblood flowing down his throat, binding him to her, and to leave his mark on her. Savoring the moment, he paused a whisper away from her smooth, creamy skin.

"_Finally…"_ he whispered, right before he sank his teeth right into her pulse.

* * *

"'CUZ YOU'RE HOT AND YOU'RE COLD, YOU'RE YES AND YOU'RE NO. YOU'RE IN AND YOU'RE OUT…"

Sorry, but this song just keeps playing over and over in my head when I think of Serena and Darien's relationship. Hahaha.

Another **A/N:** So yea, I know for an ultimate scary and powerful vampire Darien doesn't seem all that… scary, but his darker nature will be revealed along the story. Just remember that when he's with Serena, he just wants to protect her and keep her for his own (greedy, greedy!), so naturally, he'd be a little more… I dunno. Nicer, I guess. Haha. Just wanted to make that clear. Thanks for reading!


	3. Bound

**A/N:** So yay! Another chapter! Hope you're all pleased with how the story's going. Your reviews are what encourage me to continue! And I love you all for it! And I know that it takes me forever to update, but I'm just freaking crazy busy and not to mention I've had major writer's block. I had to all but force this chapter out, but I wanted to update for you! :) . haha.

Oh and a **WARNING**: this chapter is a lot more risqué than the previous ones... Not quite _there_ but a precursor. But this fic _is_ rated "M" for a reason (as I stated before).

* * *

_**Crescendo**_

Chapter 3: Bound

The feelings and passion coursing through her body were incredible; like nothing she'd ever felt before. Rather than being repulsed by the idea of someone drinking her blood, it felt... erotic, and sensual somehow. And if the increased pressure on her stomach from Darien was any indication, she wasn't the only one being affected.

Darien moaned softly as Serena's sweet, warm blood slid down his throat. Like some kind of syrup or ambrosia, her taste was absolutely addicting, and he just couldn't get enough. In all of his long existence, throughout the incredible span of his lifetime, Darien had never tasted blood or experienced such sensations as sweet and perfect as this. _ So perfect, my Serena…_

Desire and lust sparked around them, creating such a tension that both bodies were becoming restless, as they writhed against each other. Mindless with want and overcome by the powerful yet unfamiliar emotions wrung out of them, Darien continued to pull with long strokes from Serena's neck, her body completely limp in ecstasy.

Momentarily breaking free, Darien opened heavy lidded eyes, the dark blue orbs nearly black with desire, his lips painted red with Serena's blood. He slowly licked the remainder of blood off his lips, savoring the rich flavor. He felt his rigid length swell and thicken to the point of pain as Serena began to moan in protest, all but crawling up his body in an attempt to get closer. The separation felt unbearable to her and she needed all the close contact she could get.

Reaching up, she plunged her fingers into his thick raven-black hair and pulled his face down to hers, crushing her lips against his. This time, with her willing and giving, Darien ran his tongue along the seam of her sinful lips, quickly slipping through when her mouth slightly parted. He melded his mouth and body even more closely against hers as his tongue mated with hers. Their mouths still fused together, he lifted one hand and gently cupped her breast, wanting to roar with pleasure and conquest when she strained against his hand rather than pushing him away.

Brushing his thumb over her rigidly peaked nipple, he removed his mouth from hers only to return back to her neck, drawing in one last deep pull before breaking free and spinning Serena's body around so that her bottom cuddled his raging erection.

Using his teeth, he slashed a cut over his wrist and thickly demanded, "Drink from me..." Gritting his teeth against the pain/pleasure, he resisted ripping all of her clothes off and taking her on the staircase.

His demand broke through Serena's haze of desire and her thoughts finally began to clear. It took her moment to thoroughly process his words and to understand his meaning. Realizing that he meant for her to drink from the blood welling in his slashed wrist, all thoughts of sex and passion seem to flee.

Darien could feel her rising panic but he was too consumed by the bloodlust, and the animal inside him was roaring that he officially claim her as his, to make her his kind, to be by his side for now and eternity. He began to see through a red haze and even as he realized that his normally controlled and concealed dam of incredible powers was about to break free, he ignored the warnings blaring off in his head and let the beast free.

"What? No! Wait, stop Darien, let me go." Serena began to struggle as one of his powerful arms held her still and kept his other arm with the bleeding wrist in front of her face. He ignored her flailing arms and didn't even flinch when she repeatedly kicked his shins and elbowed him in the chest.

"Drink." His voice was completely monotonic, the word completely lacking any emotion or substance. It was as if he was under a trance, and wasn't planning on waking up anytime soon.

Desperately, Serena continued to struggle as Darien brought his wrist closer and closer. Normally, Serena was unbearably squeamish and couldn't even stand the sight of blood, but with Darien, nothing was the same. Even as the scent of his blood wafted to her, she felt no repulsion or any disgust; only an inexplicable hunger that she knew was unreasonable and completely inappropriate.

_DRINK! _This time, she'd not heard his voice through her ears, but in her head, as if a shadow of his presence resided in the recesses of her mind. She craned her neck around trying to get a glimpse of his face and what she saw terrified her.

His face was completely blank but in his eyes, the beautiful navy irises were tinged with a crimson red around the edge as they blazed with hunger, rage, and power. His entire body was emanating a dark force, clogging the air around them even though she could see nothing. But the waves of power and energy rolling from him were all but beating her body.

Her eyes remained transfixed on his, and as she fell under the hypnotic spell of those unblinking eyes, she distantly realized that he'd turned her back around in his arms, so that they were face to face once again. Slowly, he raised his wrist back up to her mouth and gently pressed it against her mouth, coating her lips with the thick, red liquid. Its heady scent filled her senses and strung her body tight with lust. Paralyzed by the force of Darien's power, she felt like she was caught in a dream, and couldn't wake up. Inside, she was screaming and trying to move her limp body, but still, she remained silent and unmoving. Only her eyes relayed the horror and terror of what was happening, of what was _going_ to happen.

Despite the pleading in her eyes, Darien remained as cold and unmoved as ever. When finally he removed his wrist, the wound healed instantly, not even leaving a single trace of blood on his arm or the ground.

Involuntarily, Serena licked her lips and before she could even realized what she had done, the heady taste of his blood had already flooded her mouth and invaded her senses until she became desperately frantic for more.

"Oh god. _More_. Please, more. Darien. Now. God. Please, _I want __**more**_," she begged, not even caring about what she was begging for, just so long as she could have more; like a drug user who desperately needed another hit to relieve them of the painful longing.

Darien's smile was triumphant and almost cruel in its beauty. "Then say it. Say that you're mine. Say that you will be my mate for all eternity. _Say that you love me_," he hissed. Subconsciously, he knew that she was under his thrall, that his immense powers had spilled out and consumed her to the point that she'd do anything he commanded. And even as he knew that it was wrong, knew that once the spell was broken, she could very well despise him with all her being, he let it happen, damning the consequences. _So long as she agrees to submit and never leave me._

"I'm yours. I'm yours. Your mate. Anything. Everything. I don't care. You have me. Now and forever. Please. More. Just a little bit more."

"_Do you love me_?"

"Oh god. More. Yes. I love you. _Please_, Darien." Serena felt as if her body were on fire and was going to explode in a matter of seconds if she didn't taste some more of his delicious and lethally addictive essence.

"_Forever?_" he gritted out harshly as he cut a thin line along his collarbone.

"Forever," she agreed mindlessly, immediately latching on to the wound like a baby to a mother's teat. She suckled greedily, lapping at his skin.

Darien roared his pleasure at the sensation of Serena sucking at him, taking his blood for her own. He grabbed her head and held her more closely in place, his head thrown back in rapture. He had given his blood before, to his brothers when they were in need, and to a few select others, but it had occurred with a sort of distant disinterest, not with this burst of sensation and pleasure. It was like experiencing the best orgasm of his life but without the finishing release.

Satisfied with her compliance, the beast in him calmed, reveling in the pleasure saturating his body. Slowly, Darien reigned in his powers, alarmed at his loss of control. When one as powerful his him had the ability to take out entire cities, it was best that he be in full control at all times. But something about Serena just touched a primal instinct; demanding that he protect and be obeyed, no matter the cost.

Looking down into her foggy, entranced eyes, he hoped that the cost wouldn't be too great.

When finally Serena had drunk her fill, she slowly lifted her eyes and languorously licked her lips, savoring every last drop. Her mind still clouded over and her thoughts confused, she looked back up into Darien's eyes. The red tinge had disappeared and he looked a hundred times more approachable than he had before. The air no longer had that thick, choking sensation she had sense earlier as well.

Tenderly, Darien lifted a stray strand of hair and tucked it gently behind Serena's ear. "Serena love?"

For a moment they stared deeply into each other's eyes. Some would call it a picture perfect moment, the tall, darkly handsome man and the beautiful, angelic woman wrapped in each other's arms.

That is, until Serena reached up at slapped him with all her strength across the cheek.

Although he barely even flinched, didn't even move a muscle, his mind was still reeling in shock that she actually managed to slip past his defense and strike him. No one, in at least a millennia had ever managed to hit him.

Until now.

"How _dare_ you?" she hissed furiously. "What did you do to me? I could hear you in my _head_! You made me drink…" she trailed off, feeling slightly queasy.

"I did what I had to do to insure your safety. And to bind you to me. It is not safe for you leave me. If my enemies were to find the queen unprotected… I cannot allow the risk of you almost succeeding in leaving undetected again like today," he said coolly. Tonelessly.

_Heartlessly. What a freaking __**bastard**__, _she thought angrily. Actually, she was angrier with herself than with him. For although her stomach rolled each time she thought about what she had done (_and with relish…_), she knew that she couldn't deny the fact that she had enjoyed it. Immensely. Although she'd damn well try.

_Actually, my parents were married when I was born. Quite happily in fact. _

"What the _fuck?_ How did you- "she asked, alarmed.

"Now that we have exchanged blood, we have the ability to see into each other's mind now. Well, at least, I can see into yours," he responded smoothly.

"You can read my _mind?_ What have you done to me? Oh god. Stay _out_ of my mind." She planted her hands over her ears, as if that action alone would keep Darien out.

_It's alright my love. You'll soon become accustomed to our ways. I will teach you to control your thoughts and powers._

"STOP IT! Stay out of my mind!" she screamed furiously, wrenching herself out of his arms. "Oh god. What's happening to me? How could-"

She broke off abruptly, as a wracking pain echoed through her body. She wrapped her arms around her stomach and fell on her knees, gasping for air.

"Serena?" Alarmed, Darien rushed to her. He reached out to her, only to be stopped when she held out a hand.

"_Don't touch me_," she hissed. She let out a choked scream as she felt another stab to her abdomen. It felt as if she was being cut and a burning liquid was being poured over her wounds at the same time.

"Like hell!" he yelled, taking her up into his arms.

In too much pain and shock to protest, Serena merely whimpered, hating herself for being so weak. She curled up into a ball and turned into his chest. Next thing she knew, in a blink of an eye, they were back in Darien's room, from where she had just escaped. He closed the curtains with a wave of his hands and gently placed her on the bed.

Darien was terrified. He had no idea what was happening to his mate, causing her this immense pain. He could feel her agony rolling from her in waves, leaving him feeling… Helpless.

For the first time in his life, Darien had no idea what to do, no idea as to what he could do to help. He felt utterly powerless and desperate as he watched Serena's writhing form and heard her every whimper. Helpless.

She felt as if someone was grabbing her inner organs and squeezing them, pulling and stretching them. The pain was unbearable. This time she welcomed the incoming darkness that was creeping up on her, wanting to fade into that oblivion where pain and suffering was nonexistent.

* * *

Cradling her slight frame to his, he leaned against the headboard and held her shivering body against his, whispering a litany of soothing, desperate words. As he felt her shivers and tremors subside, he let out a relieved breath. He watched Serena's pale face carefully, searching for any further signs that she was in discomfort.

There were very few things he had never understood, or couldn't find the answer to. But this… He simply had no idea what was happening to Serena. Whenever a mortal was given vampire blood, it simply gave enhanced senses; sped up healing. It didn't cause excruciating pain. Instead, the symptoms that Serena was showing were more akin to… conversion.

_No! It's not possible!_ Conversion required the mortal to be on the brink of death - usually by draining as much blood as the human could take. Only then after feeding them vampire blood would they return as the undead. But how could he deny the evidence? Already he could feel Serena's heart rate slowing exponentially, smell the change in her scent.

No, his earlier suspicions were correct. Serena was no mere human. She was something… more.

* * *

Mina bleary lifted her head from the table and looked at the clock hanging on the opposite wall.

_Nine-thirty a.m. …Ugh. I must've dozed off for a few hours._

Never before had Mina ever had such a tiring and stressful night. There she was, sleeping peacefully in a deep, dreamless sleep, recovering from the bane of her existence (a.k.a. jet lag), when someone decided to start pounding on the door, making a god-awful racket. Not to mention, when she opened the door to confront her disturbers, she was became face to face to two very large, very powerful, full-grown vampires.

_Oh god. Not this again, _she groaned. _I thought I left this all behind in Venezuela, after… Well, whatever. God I hope nothing is wrong… _

_**Psh. Yeah right Mina. "Hi, we're your friendly local neighborhood vampires, and we were just stopping by to say 'Welcome Back', and to drop off these freshly baked cookies. Oh and don't mind the ominous and eternally scary look on our faces."**_

"Uh, may I help you gentlemen?" she asked timidly. _Damn it Mina, how many times did Serena tell to always check the peep hole before opening the door?_

"Hey Mina! I'm sorry to bother you like this but I'm afraid we have a situation," said a familiar voice.

"Raye?" Mina just stared at the head that popped up behind the man with the short blond hair. "What are you doing here? At this hour?" she asked, confused out of her mind.

"Um… Well, I think we should talk about it inside; it might take some explaining," she answered nervously.

"Um, okay. I guess. But what about…" her voice trailed off as she eyed the two male vampires. _Does Raye even know what she's with?_

"Oh! Right, I forgot. This Nephrite," she said, gesturing to the dark haired man, "and this is Jadeite," she gestured to blond man. "He's my fiancé," she finished.

"Your… Wha?" she asked, horrified. _Oh my god. What has Raye gotten herself into? Does she know what these things are? _"Fiancé? Oh wow. Well, um. Congratulations." She was proud of the almost genuine smile that she gave.

"Thanks, it just happened recently." Raye smiled, but her face was still lined with worry and tension. "Anyways, we should go inside."

"Yeah. Of course." Belatedly, Mina realized that something was missing. "Where's Serena? She's not coming home with you? I thought she said that you guys were going out to dinner."

Raye hesitated and when a worried look passed over her face, that's all it took for Mina to realize that something was wrong. "Did something happen to her? Was there an accident?" she asked alarmed, already reaching for a coat and her purse, ready to go to her cousin.

"Well, that's just it. We don't know. After the concert, we waited half an hour for her. When we went to check up on her, the auditorium had already closed and all the lights were off. It's like she just disappeared. So we called her cell phone, but she never picked up. Then we thought that she might've just completely forgotten about dinner; you know how she is sometimes after concerts," Raye added with a half-smile, "so we came here and from the confused expression on your face, I guess she never came home either," she finished dejectedly. "I'm so worried about her! It's not like Serena to go wandering this late at night without telling someone. I don't know if I'm just overreacting, but I feel kind of nervous about this whole situation."

Throughout Raye's explanation Mina had remained still, frozen to the floor, but as soon as Raye was finished, Mina stuffed her sock-clad feet into thick rain boots and said, "C'mon. Let's go to the police station. I'm definitely getting a bad feeling about this too."

Raye puzzled for a moment over the look Mina gave Jadeite and Nephrite as she spoke, but didn't get a chance to expand on her thoughts as Mina rushed her out of the door. It was just that for a moment, Mina looked like she was…

Blaming them.

* * *

It was killing her, torturing her, beating her. It was relentless, unbearable, and consuming.

The thirst.

Her throat felt dry and parched as if she had swallowed a gallon of sand, her stomach twisting and wracking her body with pain as the emptiness and hunger filled her. But even amidst the pain and hunger, she felt strong arms around her, protecting her and a deep, soothing voice, comforting her, warming her.

She went for the jugular.

* * *

For the past hour, Darien had been gently holding Serena to his body, whispering words of comfort, words of love, even complete nonsense in his desperation to bring her back to consciousness. When he mentally scanned through the physical condition of her body, he noted with part confusion, part understanding that while she was no longer human, she still was not completely vampire, as if a whole other being still remained a part of her body; a being that that he could not recognize.

It was yet another strange phenomenon, another extreme rarity as Darien once again found himself at a loss, not knowing what was happening or how to fix things. If only he could-

_Holy FUCK! _Abruptly, all train of lucid and cohesive thoughts immediately fled his mind as all the blood in his brain, hell, all the blood in his _body_ shot straight down to his groin.

Serena's eyes had shot open and even before he could process this relieving news, she had sprung up and pinned him down, with amazing speed and agility, latching down on his neck and suckling like a newborn.

Caught completely off guard, again! This would not do. What was the world coming to, if he, Master Vampire and the proclaimed King could be caught off guard by a woman who was half his size?

His thoughts trailed off as he groaned again when she began to writhe and rub against him, his body already taut and as tight as a wire. When her roaming hands began to wander south, teasing him as they lightly brushed the large bulge straining against his zipper, Darien quickly flipped their positions, in order to avoid coming right there in his pants. She laughed huskily against his neck, never breaking connection as his powerful blood continued to flow into her eager mouth.

He slipped his hand under her (well actually, his) shirt, stroking her smooth, satiny skin, until he was stroking the undersides of her breasts, circling a fingertip around the peaked tip, never quite touching. She finally lifted her mouth, her lips painted red, as she moaned and wrapped her arms around him, bringing them even closer together.

This was what he had been waiting for, what had subconsciously kept him sane and alive for all this centuries. As he stared down at Serena's enraptured face, her eyes closed and her breath unsteady, he felt so much heat in him, so much damn _love_, it seemed impossible.

Impossible that he had really found her, impossible that she was in his arms, impossible that he even knew how to love. Yet, it was happening.

He slammed his mouth down against hers, his tongue sweeping in and battling against her own, as they kissed with such ferocity that it seemed as if they were fused at the mouth. Her hands clumsily attempted to undo his trousers, until he growled and brought her arms back up, pinning them above her head. She nipped at his mouth in protest, but that only spurred him on further.

Using his free hand, he tore her shirt off with a mere tug and latched his mouth onto a bare, rosy nipple. Serena cried out as his tongue swirled around the bud and as he gently caught the sensitive tip between his teeth. Releasing her hands, he brought his other hand down to see to her other breast, as he lightly rolled her nipple between two fingers.

Plunging her hands into his thick, dark locks, Serena brought his head even closer, her mind hazy with absolute pleasure and ecstasy. She cried out in protest when he lifted his tousled head from her breasts and stared into her eyes. Vaguely, she noticed that his eyes were taking on that same slightly red tinge as it had earlier, until she lost her train of thought when he lowered his head back down, but this time pierced the skin right above her heart. She fell into an intense orgasm, her body wracked with pleasure as this time, Darien drew blood from her.

"Darien, please. Oh please. Let me… Just. Oh god. Darien." The words just tumbled out of her mouth, her mind numb and thoughts incoherent.

_Drink Serena. Drink from me and make us one. Bind us, and be my Queen. I have waited an eternity for this, for _you_, and cannot wait any longer._

Without hesitation, Serena fell under the heady compulsion of his smooth voice in her head, not even caring that he was doing the very thing she had forbade him to do earlier. With Darien still latched onto to her breast, she craned down and bit his jugular, not even stopping for a moment to think about what she was choosing to do.

For a moment, there was a blinding rush of power as a dark aura emanated from Darien and battled with the pure white light shining from Serena. The two auras seemingly battled against each other, striking and retreating, striking and retreating.

Oblivious to the obvious turmoil raging around them, Darien and Serena remained entwined as they exchanged blood. Any other time, Darien would've been amazed that so much resistance was being shown against his powers, but as Serena's hands began to wander again, he became, to say the least, rather distracted.

Finally, the darkness and the light began to wane, as if their attacks were fruitless and losing energy. Instead, they began to twist and tangle, entwining thin strands of dark and light.

Breaking apart, Darien and Serena stared deeply into the other's eyes, forever imprinting the image of their destined mated deep within their hearts. Coming together, they shared one last, deep kiss before the air around them began to crackle. Then, all of a sudden, the entwined aura of night and day were sucked back into the embracing couple.

Serena gasped out in pain and broke off the kiss when suddenly she felt a searing, burning sensation right above her heart, where Darien had previously bitten.

At the same moment, Darien slapped a hand on his neck, as he too, felt a burning prick on his skin. Underneath his hand, a bright red light shone for a brief moment, before it disappeared.

For a moment, the only sound evident in the room was the deep and heavy breaths of the couple, as they stared at each other with half-dazed, half-amazed looks.

"W-w-what just happened?" Serena stuttered. Her body was still feeling intensely aroused, yet she also felt as if she'd just gotten her money's worth at an all-you-can-eat buffet. Her mind still fuzzy, she looked down at herself and screamed.

"WHAT DID YOU DO?" she yelled, quickly pulling on the tattered shirt that hung limply from her wrists. Her entire upper torso was bare and her breasts were still rosy from the passionate embrace and attention Darien had bestowed upon them. There was a noticeably brighter red area on the swell of her left breast, right above her heart. It appeared to be some sort of shape, but Serena didn't want to risk lowering her shirt in front of Darien to examine it further. "What just happened? What is that-"

"Don't worry, it was nothing that you didn't enjoy, my sweet," Darien purred. "Now, let's just finish what we started." He swiftly pulled her into his arms and began to lower his head once more, aiming for those luscious, tempting lips.

Her lips parted in reflex and she felt her eyes begin to shutter close before she caught herself. "No! Wait! Stop! Please!"

Something in her tone caused him to pause. As he lifted his head and searched her face, he could see that she was noticeably frightened and confused. Gently caressing her face, he tilted his head to the left, drawing Serena's attention to a similar red mark on his neck. As she squinted her eyes and looked closer, she saw that it appeared to be a tattoo of some sort, with a vague shine that was beginning to fade.

"That mark- I think I just saw that- wait, what? How did it… Why do I… Why is it…" She trailed off, as again, an overwhelming sense of panic and confusion started to come over her.

_Why is all this crazy shit happening to __**me**__? Maybe I'm just having a really, really, intensely realistic dream that I can't wake up from. Oh god oh god oh god. WAKE UP. Please. Let this all be a dream. This can't be happening. _

"That, my love, is a sign of our marriage," said the impossibly sexy and gorgeous not-so-figment of her imagination said calmly. "And you are most assuredly, quite awake."

"Well fudge."

* * *

Mina was just about ready to go out of her mind with worry. Not only was it begin to get dark, but she still hadn't heard any news about Serena yet.

_Serena, what have you gotten into now? Honestly, why can't we all just live a nice, simple, uncomplicated life? _she thought, stressfully pacing the room. She stopped and shivered when an unexpected cold burst of air brushed across her skin. _Did I leave a window open?_

She stepped out of the kitchen and headed towards the window in the sitting room, only to stop dead in her tracks upon seeing the tall man nonchalantly sitting upon the windowsill. The man smiled broadly, his sharp and extended canines flashing dangerously in the light.

Even as she paled and her heart began to race in fear, she couldn't suppress the dreaded excitement and shameful joy upon seeing the man's face.

"Hello Mina."

"Kunzite."


	4. Me to You

**A/N:** Yay! I updated almost within a month. A record! Ha ha. How pathetic. Honestly the reason for that is because I got so many reviews; it put me in a good mood. What can I say? I'm a review junkie (I especially like the long ones ;D. *hint hint*). Anyways, I don't know if you guys find anything confusing so far, but if you do, just drop me a question and I'll have it cleared up for you a.s.a.p. Oh, and if you have any spelling/grammar corrections, please tell me!

And again, a **WARNING**: super bossy, possessive alpha male-ness in the near future. If you are a feminist or something and get annoyed by that kind of thing, then good for you and keep it up. But I gotta say, it's freaking hot when Darien does it. I want a Darien. Christmas is coming up… Hm…

* * *

_**Crescendo**_

Chapter 4: Me to You

_Okay Serena. You are an intelligent and educated woman. You can easily think this through rationally. Sure you just got married to a vampire and have some weird glowing tattoo on your chest, but hey, if you're a vampire I guess anything can happen. Kim Jong Il will get a haircut and join 'Queer Eye for the Straight Guy'. Unicorns will pop out of the sky and eat us all, _she thought shakily.

_**I understand that this is all coming as a shock to you, but let's not say ridiculous things. Unicorns, perhaps, but honestly, 'Queer Eye for the Straight Guy'? Highly unlikely. **_

"Hey, hey, HEY! Didn't I tell you NOT to do that? It creeps me out okay? Just let me keep my thoughts to myself alright?" Serena vented heatedly. "I understand you're 'all-powerful' and 'King of all Dark Creatures' and all that other 'woo-woo' crap, but honestly, just give me a little time to adjust here all right fang boy?" she ranted, waving her hands around in agitation.

"Well now, _fang girl_, you better get used to all this _'woo-woo' crap_, because it's going to be a part of your life for about… Oh, say, the next eternity or so," he said with a smile. "Or at least, until I let you go…"

"Really?"

"…which will happen after about an eternity times infinity- a.k.a. never."

"Oh."

He took her into his arms again and gently ran a fingertip over the sharp points of her canines. "Honestly, does it seem that horrible to you? You will be a Queen, and will be treated and live like one. I can give you anything and everything that you ask for: money, jewels, luxury, security, love- it is all yours," he said, his voice as smooth as silk.

"And my friends, my family, my work? What will happen to all of that? What will happen to my life? Can you give me all that as well? Can you give me the same happiness and contentment that I had before you? Tell Darien, will I ever love _you_?" she mocked.

It was as if a mask had shuttered over Darien's face. Gone was the teasing man who gently held her in his arms, and in his place was someone completely different. Someone cold. Someone Serena was frightened of.

Hiding her fear, she held her belligerent and stubborn stance, refusing to back down. "So I see. You can't. You actually _can't _give me everything, can you? Darien, what right do you have to keep me here? Am I to just be your prisoner?"

Her words dug a hole in his heart, twisting the knife deeper and deeper until he was numb to the pain. _She doesn't love me. After all, what have I done to deserve her love? She doesn't love me. How can I make her happy? She doesn't love me. I can give her nothing that she truly wants. She doesn't love me. It was too good to be true…_

"I will take care of you."

"And if that's not enough for me?" she challenged.

"It will be."

"Ugh!" Serena threw her hands up in exasperation. "You can't honestly expect me to have that much faith and confidence in you!"

"Why not? Everyone else does."

"It just doesn't work that way I tell you! You can't just say 'you will be happy' and _poof_ I'm happy." She stopped and took a deep, calming breath. She let out an exasperated sigh and said, "Okay, I'm willing to accept that you're a vampire and that I'm your m-m-mate, but you can't honestly expect to keep me locked up in this house forever do you?" She attempted to give him a weak smile. "Be reasonable."

"I am. You're the one who insists on sputtering all this nonsense."

"_Me_. _Sputtering_… _Nonsense_. You. _Agh_!" She thrust herself away from Darien and out of the bed, stomping towards the wall. Slamming both palms against the wall, she let out a slow, shaky breath. "Okay, first things first. My name is Serena Delancy and you are Darien Shields. I am 26 years old and you are of a few millennia. You are a vampire-"

"King. And you are my Queen," he interrupted.

"Yeah, yeah, I was getting to that part. Hold your horses," she muttered. "Anyways, _King_ of the Vampires, and you claim to have made me your queen. Therefore, that would make me-"

"A vampire."

"-as well. Damn it. Well now, isn't that just a fudging kick in the reality bucket. I'm a vampire. A _vampire_." She gave him a scornful look. "Don't tell me your real name is really Lestat or Dracula or something."

"No, they were executed under royal decree a few centuries ago for revealing themselves and our species to the human world," he said blandly.

She let out a sigh. "Okay. I can handle this. I _can_. Nothing too difficult..." She stopped for a minute. "Except… You don't _really_ expect to keep me locked up in this house do you?"

Darien's face was completely devoid of emotion as he said, "it's a necessary precaution for you, as you are just a fledgling vampire, almost completely powerless."

She whirled around to face Darien, her pale blue eyes sparking. "Yes. And thanks to who?" she raged furiously. "I can't believe this. I didn't make this decision. _This wasn't my choice_."

_**I don't believe so. Do you not remember your own words?**_

Before she could even realize that he was in her mind again, a memory slid into her head, making her body burn as she recalled the hunger, lust, and desperation she had felt earlier. She remembered the craving and painfulness of her thirst, the need for fulfillment making her body sensitive, responsive to the slightest touch. Of how desired him. Of how she was wet for him. Of how she loved him.

"_I'm yours. I'm yours. Your mate. Anything. Everything. I don't care. You have me. Now and forever…Yes. I love you. _Please_, Darien…Forever…"_

The words echoed throughout her mind and body. "No! It's not true! That wasn't me! I mean it was, but I wasn't- I didn't know what I was saying! You did… things, and I couldn't think. I _didn't_ want this!" Serena cried.

_**It's out of your hands. Fate has made it your choice. It's our destiny: you were made for me, as I was made for you. There was nothing you could've done to keep it from happening.**_

_So you strip me of my freedom? Am I now so weak that I can no longer think for myself? Am I to be your slave, locked up because you demand it? You say that we are married, yet I see no union, no "matrimony." I see no future. I'd rather die than remain like this, no power, no opinion, no freedom. _

Serena didn't care that she was 'speaking' the very way that she just forbade him to do moments ago. All her thoughts were too consumed by the enormity of the situation. Her mind said no, her body said yes, but her heart didn't know where to follow.

* * *

Darien's soul grieved for her as he felt her pain and confusion. But he couldn't risk it. _Would not _risk it. To have come this far and to lose her as quickly as he had found her would break him. He knew it was selfish and unfair of him, but he couldn't help it. Couldn't stop it.

The silence stretched between them, Darien's emotionless mask staring down into Serena's flushed, angry face.

"Well you know what? You may have taken my life, my freedom, and my power, but you will never have me. I will _never _love you," she hissed.

He snapped.

* * *

Serena knew her words were cruel and harsh, but she couldn't stop herself. All her fear, her anger, her confusion, her resentment came pouring out of her through her words.

She could see that with each word that left her mouth, Darien's face grew colder and colder, until all traces of emotion were wiped clean. He stood ramrod straight, making his already imposing height look even more threatening. Then she noticed something strange. His eyes…

Just like before, his deep, dark blue irises were encircled by a ring of red, the color bleeding into the oceanic depths.

She stared in horror as two long, deadly fangs emerged, curving dangerously over his lower lip. She began to back away slowly, her body too stunned to flee as she should've, stopping only when she had backed up against a wall. Before, when the same tension and power clogged the air, she had been too distracted by the hypnotic pull of Darien's eyes and the heady scent of blood that had consumed her thoughts.

By this time, his beautiful eyes no longer even held a trace of their previous color, as crimson rings surrounded his pupils. She stared on in fascinated horror as a huge set of thickly feathered, glossy black wings emerged from his back, the very tips touching the floor.

_A vampire… With wings. How is that- How could he-. _Serena really had no idea what to think. She had accepted the idea of vampires, but this new development, not to mention the vicious look glinting in Darien's eyes, was causing her sense of reason to go haywire.

Darien began walking, no, _gliding_, towards her when she heard a strange, ripping sound. Looking frantically around the room for the source of the noise, she saw that it was coming from the floor. The feathers from his wings that were being dragged across the carpet were slicing right through the carpeting and floor, like razor blades easily tearing through tissue paper.

"You deny me so easily; how you must despise me." Darien's voice was strange, almost guttural, not the same, silky voice that she was used to. "But I'm afraid you have no choice in this matter. You. Are. Mine. Anyone or anything that gets in the way of us will be immediately exterminated. I have waited long and patiently for you to arrive, and I fucking _deserve_ this. I have ruled fairly and greatly for the past thirteen centuries. Now it's my turn to get something in return. I waited for my reward; even when I thought was going to go insane, I didn't give in, like so many others did. But you're here now, and you'll be here _forever_, regardless of whether you want it or even if you don't love me. I don't give a fucking shit. _I _will love you, and You. Will. Stay." His body towered over hers, the power radiating from him making her skin burn and sting.

She wasn't going to back down. "So reduced to being a dog now? Pat me on the head, and say 'stay'. If I'm good will I get a treat? I'm not even allowed to be a person anymore. No, now I'm a canine."

"STOP IT!" he roared, and wave of power exploded from beneath his feet, so powerful that Serena was thrown back against the wall. The red of Darien's eyes faded slightly when Serena cried out in pain as the back of her head slammed into the panel, but didn't completely disappear.

"Is that what you think? That I want you to be my slave? You are my _mate_. My wife. My equal. My _queen_. You do not submit to anyone. You will never have to bow before anyone. The world will bow to you."

She said nothing as she gingerly touched the back of her head, expecting to feel a lump, only to discovered that not only had the pain already disappeared, but that her head was perfectly fine. "Then what is that _you_ want?"

"You. I only want you to remain by my side. You do not have to love me, you don't even have to care about me. You just cannot leave me." His words were so bleak and hopeless that Serena could feel her stubborn heart wrench.

She continued to avoid looking at him as she spoke. "I don't really have a choice here, do I?" she said wryly. "Would you let me go if I refused?"

"No," he replied without hesitation.

"Then what choice do I have?" she sighed. "Alright, Darien, I agree. But remember the terms. I will stay, but you won't matter to me. I won't care about you. I won't love you. Do you agree?"

"I do."

"Then leave. I will remain in your prison. But I don't want to see you." Serena could feel her heart breaking, dying. She had lost everything overnight. She would never be able to return to her old life. She'd never she the people she loved ever again. It was gone. Everything. Her soul mourned at the thought of the pain this would cause her family, her friends. To have disappeared instantly, without a clue or an idea why. The tears she had so desperately tried to suppress threatened to spill.

It was all his fault. That _thing's_ fault.

Darien.

When she finally dared to look at him again, he had almost returned to his previous state, his elongated fangs now just two abnormally sharp and pointed canines and his eyes only slightly tinged with red. Only his wings remained, the massive collection of razor-sharp feathers that sliced through everything they touched.

They stared silently at each other, neither of them moving until Serena's first tear spilled. She hadn't cried the entire time. Not even during the painful transition had she shed a single tear. But now, her heart so burdened and empty, her soul began to weep, and tears began to stream down.

Darien reached forward, wanting to wipe away the evidence of her unhappiness, but stopped abruptly when she flinched away from his hand. That single movement was like a blow to his stomach, wrenching him so harshly that for a split second he wished he could take it all back and to just spare her this pain.

He recalled earlier when he lost all control, and completely let loose. Serena's cry of pain as she was thrown against the wall echoed over and over in his mind, torturing him. Yet he welcomed it, wanted to be punished for being so thoughtless as to cause Serena harm. He claimed that he wanted to protect her, yet he was the only one hurting her.

He reached forward again, ignoring the look of fear and hate in her glistening eyes. As the silent tears ran over her cheeks and began to drip, he caught each one in the palm of his hand. It was not until her tears stopped that he spoke again. "I will make everything in your world beautiful. You will not regret this," he said softly.

Taking her hand in his, he put the hand that caught her tears over her palm. When he opened his hand, he released a handful of perfectly cut, clear, and flawless diamonds, each in the shape of a single tear into her palm.

She didn't even spare them a look as she carelessly dropped her hand, not caring as the sparkling stones scattered across the carpet, some of them tumbling beneath the furniture.

"I already do."

* * *

They stared at each other, Mina warily and Kunzite hungrily. It had been more than a year since they had last seen each other, but it seemed like it had been more than a century.

"I told you I'd find you," Kunzite said calmly. "Did you really think I'd let you go?"

"I didn't really care, as long as I could get away from you," Mina shot back. "So you found me. Big whoop. I'll just leave again."

He moved so quickly that Mina barely had the chance to react, let alone move away before she found her herself pinned to the ground below Kunzite.

"I'm afraid you're mistaken. One time is more than enough. I allowed you this ridiculous sense of independence for a while, but now you will return with me," he declared firmly. His eyes softened as they roamed over her face. "My poor Mina. How tired and weak you look." He traced a fingertip over her lips and down her chin.

Defiantly, she turned her head away, attempting to resist that longing urge to accept his gentle touch. "I'm no longer with you Kunzite. My place is not with you. That ended a year ago."

"On the contrary, it never ended. I understood that you needed some time to adjust, so I gave it to you. Did you honestly think that it was the end?"

"It doesn't matter. It ended when you lied and betrayed me. I trusted you. I _loved_ you. But not anymore. I know better now. I know the truth. What you really are. And I don't ever want to be with you again," she hissed.

"But you do not have a choice in this matter. We are linked, we are one. You need me, your body calls for me. Tell me, when did you last feed? It must have been quite a while ago, if your current weakened state is of any indication."

She didn't answer him. Instead, she quite her eyes firmly averted and tried to ignore the delicious sensation of Kunzite's long, hard body pressed against hers. But she knew she couldn't deny it. She craved him, wanted him, and longed for him. But it hurt too much. It broke her once, and she would never risk what remained of her heart again.

"Mina?" he said softly, burying his face into the crook of her neck. He inhaled deeply, absorbing that delicious scent that only belonged to his mate. He ran the tip of his tongue over the delicate blue vein that ran along the side of her neck, and teasingly gave small nips with his fangs, not ever breaking the skin. He smiled in satisfaction as he heard the small moan that escaped from Mina's lips. Encouraged, he ran his hands down her shapely body.

He knew every dip, every curve, and every shadow. He remembered that some nights, after they made love and Mina had fallen into a deep slumber, he would pull off the covers just to stare and memorize her relaxed form, at the body that fit perfectly with his, that was made for his.

Her golden hair fanned across the floor, and he could remember how lovely it looked when it was spread across his pillows, as his own silver-white strands entwined with hers. But the thing that he missed seeing the most was her eyes. Clear and as blue as a cloudless sky, her eyes were pure and beautiful, for they had always shined with love and happiness. Every emotion she felt he could always see in her eyes, and it killed him all over again to see her eyes so empty. Those blue orbs that once stared at him in adoration were now full of distrust and betrayal.

And he knew it was his fault.

But he did not regret his choice. He'd once almost lost her for good, and he never wanted to take that risk again, despite the consequences of his actions.

She'd never leave him again.

* * *

Mina gasped aloud in shock and in lust and Kunzite's long fangs penetrated her skin. The familiar sensation of his mouth suckling brought a torrent of desire and hunger. She plunged her fingers into his silky silver hair and made small noises of encouragement as he continued to drink from her. His hands by now had gone under her baggy nightshirt and were palming her breasts, and she writhed under the pleasure of his hands.

"You taste so delicious. I've been starving for you. Aren't you hungry as well? Do you think I cannot tell how much your body calls for mine? How it calls for my blood? Take what I freely offer to you, Mina. Sate your hunger." His voice was hypnotizing her, seducing her. She could feel the deep ache of hunger stringing her stomach.

As she lifted her hand to his neck and delicately wrapped her fingers around the side, they never once broke eye contact, as they continued to stare deeply into each other's eyes. Mina's fangs slowly slid out and as she lowered her mouth to his vein, he closed his eyes in anticipation and excitement.

Her fangs pierced his skin.

_Mina… I love you._

* * *

Upon returning to her room (actually, it was Darien's, but she really didn't give a rat's ass), she found that the door leading to the bathroom was open. Upon entering she found the wide, impressively large Jacuzzi bath filled with hot water and scented bubbles.

_Psh. He thinks he's so clever. Lure me to the dark side with jewels and bubbles, will he? What a fucking bastard. God I need to get out of this place._

_**Oh yea, since your last escape attempt turned out so well. You became a vampire for goodness sake. Next thing you know, you'll be a fucking werewolf or something.**_

Dismissing the little pessimistic voice in her head, she ignored the tempting looking frothy water and drained the tub, opting to take a quick shower later instead.

She finished her shower and wrapped in a thick black terry robe that smelled oh-so-familiar, she sat on the dainty chair that accompanied the delicate bureau that looked conspicuously out of place amongst the masculine décor. Looking up into the large mirror on the wall above the bureau she examined her face.

_I can see my reflection. Guess that's just an old wives' tale…And I really, really crave some garlic bread right now… Is that normal? _

She said the Lord's Prayer aloud, and repeated it.

_Okaaaay. Well I didn't just spontaneously combust or anything… What __**is**__vampiric about me?_

She opened her mouth to examine her teeth. Other than her canines being just slightly more pointed than before, they looked perfectly fine. Not elongated or abnormally large or anything.

Serena looked at the large grandfather clock and noted the time.

_Five-thirty a.m. It should be sunrise soon._ She looked at the heavy drapery hanging over the large windows, the thick material not even allowing a sliver of light into the room. _I wonder…Maybe I'm not a true vampire. Maybe I'm still a little human and that's why all those things don't those affect me. _The words sounded pathetic and desperate to her own ears, and she knew that she was grasping at straws, but Serena didn't care. It was her last hope.

Standing up from the chair, she walked over to the windows and stopped before the part in the curtains. _I'll just open it a little, and take a little peak. Darien said that only very powerful vampires aren't affected by the sunlight. If nothing happens, maybe that means that I'm not really totally a vampire. _

Her hand trembled slightly as she reached for the curtains. As she pushed the heavy material back and the golden rays of the early morning sunlight shone in, she held her breath as the warmth of the sun kissed her skin.

And then she screamed as pain engulfed her.

**

* * *

A/N: **I realize that it seems like Serena is overreacting and freaking out too much, but I've had enough stories of when the heroine gets kidnapped and falls instantly in love with her kidnapper. I mean, how ridiculous is that? If a person got kidnapped, they'd be freaking out and going crazy. Not to mention if your kidnapper claimed to be a vampire and starts bleeding all over the place; they'd think that the kidnapper was a psychopath or something. So yea. Darien's gonna have to through a lot of crap for being all he-male and stealing Serena. Mua ha ha ha ha.


	5. Now and Forevermore

**A/N:** Yea, I know. It takes me awhile. But at least I _do_ update. I promise, I'll finish the story… I just don't know how long it'll take. :). But hey, if you want to push me a little harder, give me nice, long review, and I'll return the favor with a nice, long chapter. Mua ha ha. I'm mean. I know. No but really, thanks for everyone's reviews. It's what motivates me at 4 a.m. when I'm supposed to be studying for school! Ha ha.

**WARNING: **Eh. Standard warning. Blood. Lust. Etc. Hence the "M" rating.

* * *

_**Crescendo**_

Chapter 5: Now and Forevermore

"Darien… I think I'm in love with you," Serena said softly.

He looked down in into those beautiful pale blue eyes, drowning in the emotions swirling through their depths. This was the moment he had been waiting for his entire life. What he had hoped for. What he wished for.

It was finally granted.

Serena's thin, gauzy white dress swirled around her ankles and her silver hair fell tumultuously down her back. She reached up and entwined her slender arms around his neck as she pulled him down to her mouth. Just a hair's breadth away from his lips, she whispered, "Actually, I know that I love you."

Her scent overwhelmed him, as he took in a deep breath and savored the feeling of her soft, fragile body molded against his own long, hard one. Every dip and curve seemed to melt against him just as her mouth melted into his.

Her dainty tongue slipped into his mouth and teased his own, filling his senses with her taste. The kiss was long and slow, and he savored every minute of it, imprinting the memory of her taste and scent into his mind. When their mouths broke apart, Serena walked forward, forcing Darien to walk backwards, until the back of his calves hit the soft cushion of an armchair. She gently pushed him down, motioning for him to take a seat. He did so without breaking eye contact, his body taught with arousal and desire. She slowly slid the hem of her dress up to her thighs and climbed up onto the chair to straddle his thighs.

"Serena-"

_Shhh, Darien. Let me do this. I want to. I need to, _she purred seductively in his mind.

Serena ground her own heated core against his arousal, and he knew without a doubt that this slow, agonizing pleasure was as much of a torture for her as it was for him. She whimpered softly in her throat, the sound shooting through Darien's body like an arrow.

He couldn't take it anymore.

Grasping her hips, he brought the movements of her seductive bump-and-grind to a halt.

"No more," he gritted out between clenched teeth. He began to stand up to carry Serena to the nearby bed, but suddenly realized that his entire body was frozen in place; that he couldn't move.

_What the hell? _He looked up into Serena's face and saw that she was no longer smiling. Rather, her eyes were dead and flat, with silent tears tracking down her ghostly-pale face.

Darien struggled to get up, but it was impossible. Even with all his strength and powers combined, he couldn't even budge an inch. While he struggled against his invisible bonds with the beast in him roaring in outrage, Serena had slid off his lap and began walking silently away towards the door.

"Goodbye Darien." There was no remorse in her voice, no sadness. Just an empty shell with a toneless voice.

"NO!" he roared, and the doors and windows disappeared in a flash, thrusting the room into near darkness, save for a few candles and dimly lit lamps around the room. His heart racing, he struggled even harder to get up. Then, as quick as blink, he saw Serena again, yet she was now trapped inside a huge, beautifully ornate bird cage that was set right before him, so close that the door was not one inch away from his foot. Silver leaves and vines twined around the bars with jewels and precious stones melded into the delicate design.

Serena sat on a plush, scarlet-colored lounge chair, her head bowed and her hands buried in her lap.

"Serena! Release me!" he roared. He felt his wings burst out, the razor sharp feathers slicing through the armchair's thick cushions as they spread apart in their full glory and tore the chair's entire back into shreds. Yet when he tried to move them according to his will, urging them to demolish whatever invisible forcing was holding him back, he realized that they too, were just as frozen as the rest of his body.

The entire room was swirling in chaos as the dark cloud of his power emanated from him, destroying all in his path. He tried to break open the cage that Serena was trapped in, yet every blow and hit he inflicted onto the cage made no difference; it remained as beautiful and untarnished as before.

Finally, Serena stood and stepped forward, her arms dangling lifelessly at her side and her head still bowed until her face was all but touching the bars of the cage. He noticed a sharp glint of metal from her side and realized that in her right hand, she loosely gripped a long, slender sword, the point glinting wickedly. Slowly she lifted her head and stared dead straight into his eyes. The look of loathing and pain he saw in them punched him in the stomach, forcing all the air out of his lungs.

"Serena. Oh no." He realized what she meant to do and a feeling of absolute horror and fear overcame him. This was not supposed to happen. He was not supposed to be so powerless. He had to stop it. He had to. He stared on in horror as Serena swiftly lifted the curved sword, the point just a foot away from his face. "SERENA! NO! STOP!" he thundered.

She ignored him, and brought down the lethal point through flesh and bone. Darien shouted in pain and outrage, and all around him, the room exploded. The walls began to crumble and room shook. He fell to his knees as his body was suddenly released from its immobile state and he gripped the bars of the cage, looking up into Serena's eyes. She too was on her knees, and the look of triumph and satisfaction on Serena's face was terrifyingly yet poetically stunning.

"Serena, _why?_ I gave you everything you wanted. Everything anyone could have ever wished for." His voice was hoarse and his body was going numb with pain. The blood began to pool, the crimson color cruelly beautiful in its cold purity.

Serena reached out with her long, slender arms through the bars and brought Darien's head closer. Bringing their heads as close as the bars would permit, she gave him one last, soft kiss.

"Never yours," she whispered.

He watched in broken horror as bloody tears began to stream from her eyes. The arms that clutched his head loosened as he watched the life leave her body and his heart die. The knife she had plunged into her stomach protruded from her back, the blood pouring so steadily that it began to stream over the edge of the cage and pool at his knees.

For a few moments, he stared disbelievingly. It wasn't possible for her to die. As a vampire, wounds like this, while painful, were not fatal. He tried desperately to find his link to her, the link that bound her heart to his, but it was gone. As if it had never even existed. As if Serena had never even been born.

_No…_

Serena's body had begun to fade, her image so blurred and transparent that he could see the other side of the cage through her. Not only had he lost her heart, but now she was completely disappearing physically, as if he was not worthy of keeping even a single reminder of her. He tried to break open the cage fruitlessly, the silver bars as indestructible as they had been before. When he reached through to grasp at her body, his fingers slipped silently through her image, gathering only a handful of mist that disappeared almost immediately.

He felt his mind shut down, the last remnants of his humanity die. He stared and stared at her until only the faintest wisps of her image remained. Finally, she faded completely. Not a drop of her blood remained, and the sword that ended her life had faded with the body. The silver door swung open silently and Darien stood up to walk in.

Inside the cage, he knelt down, picking up several blood-red, flawless rubies.

Her tears were all that she left for him.

* * *

When Darien opened his eyes, the sense of relief and gratitude that rushed through him was electrifying. The vision-

_No, __**dream**__._

_Dream_ had felt so real that he could still feel the soft press of Serena's lips against his; the weight of her tears in his palm.

'_Never yours_' she had whispered before her death.

_Well then, I'll just have to damn sure, that becomes mine; until she wants to be mine. Until she can't live without being mine._

Whatever it fucking took. But one thing was certain.

He would _never_ let her go. Ever.

* * *

"Mr. Tremain, when can we expect the return of Mr. Shields?" a fretful man in a boxy suit asked nervously. The small man wiped his sweaty brow and nearly cringed beneath the piercing black stare.

_Or glare_, the man thought nervously.

"It's just that he has quite a few important meetings schedule, as well as a function to attend tonight, and none of the staff has seen or heard from him for more than twenty-four hours," he rambled on nervously.

"Reschedule the meetings. Or divide them amongst the partners. We'll take care of it. And send Mr. Shield's regrets and a large contribution to the charity benefit tonight. That is all." He turned around and faced the large windows that looked down at the busy streets of New York.

"But, but-" the nervous man stammered.

"_But?_" The large man didn't turn around, but the message was clear: we're through. Get out.

"Nothing!" the assistant squeaked, and he scampered out of the plush, expensive office.

Only when the nuisance had left and the door locked behind him did Nephrite relax. He turned around and sat in the high backed chair, closing his eyes. A sudden additional presence in the room alerted his senses, but he didn't open his eyes. Instead, a tired, yet happy smile slid onto his face.

The blinds in his room silently lowered, the flaps closing to conceal any bit of sunlight that streamed into the room, but the lamps remained lit.

The familiar scent of chocolate and caramel reached him, and he groaned in satisfaction as a tall, curvy woman slid onto his lap and gave him a soft, teasing kiss.

"You're so mean. Everyone here is clearly terrified of you. But I think you prefer and enjoy it that way, don't you?" Her husky voice was teasing and low, as she ran her fingers through Nephrite's dark hair.

"Lita my love, I highly doubt that anyone is more afraid of me than they are of Darien. I think I'm doing the people of these meetings a favor by sparing the piss-in-your-pants-because-you're-so-scared presence of His Highness." Nephrite, wrapped his arms around his mate, and buried his face in Lita's long, auburn tumble of hair. "God I really needed this. Need you."

"I could tell. What's going on? What happened?" she asked concernedly, settling comfortably in his lap.

"Stop wriggling around if you want me to tell you," he growled playfully, his body reacting in a not-so-playful way.

"Oh for heaven's sake, stop. You get distracted so easily. Now tell me," Lita demanded.

"Well I wouldn't get so distracted if your ass didn't keep rubbing and squirming against my c-"

"Nephrite!" She let out a gasp and hit his chest in outrage. "Language! What if that slipped out in front of Lapis?"

Properly chastised, Nephrite gave her a submissive bow of the head. Then he squeezed her ass, just because she was so damn cute lecturing him like that, while she sat primly on his lap.

Lita squeaked. "Stop that! If you don't, I won't give you your present later. Now tell me what's going on."

He forcefully suppressed his lustful thoughts of Lita wrapped in nothing but velvet red ribbon placed in very strategic places, being offered to him as his 'present'. "Okay, okay." He sighed as the briefly forgotten stress returned to him.

"His Highness hasn't been seen in for more than a day, ever since he attended that piano concert. When I did manage to briefly get into contact with him, all I got was a mental image of his middle finger. Other than that, no one else has managed to get into contact with him at all. Not only that, Kunzite of all people, also hasn't gotten back to me. Ever since last night, I still haven't heard from him. _And,_ not only that, a woman named Serena has also disappeared."

"Wait a sec. Serena, as the pianist of the concert Darien attended?"

"Yes. And also as in the Serena, Raye's best friend."

"Oh! Speaking of, I forgot to tell you this, but I finally met Raye the other day! She stopped by the bakery and ordered a dozen strawberry-jelly filled zeppole. Which is, I might add, Jadeite's favorite. She didn't know who I was, but I could sense Jadeite's presence on her. She seems like a very nice person. I liked her," Lita said happily. "There are so few women these days, it'd be nice to have a girlfriend or something to hang out with." She sighed. "Anyways, continue, continue." She made a shooing motion with her hands, motioning for him to go on.

Nephrite, stared at his wife's shining, beautiful face, her expression open and happy. Perched on his lap and her hands folded in her lap, he just couldn't resist.

"God! You're so cute and sexy!" He thrust his hand up Lita's plain green shirt and covered her bare breast with his palm. "Ah… What's this? No bra? You naughty girl." He flicked the sensitive tip between his fingers and moaned with approval when the scent of her arousal began to fill the air.

"I was… In a hurry…" she panted, her mind fogging over. "No… stop it… Tell me… Finish…"

Nephrite gently nipped at her ear and continued. "That's pretty much it. Jadeite, Raye, and I went to her house later that night to see if she had returned, but she hadn't. But her cousin, Mina was there."

"I see…Oh god, Nephrite." His fingers had begun to trail down beneath the waistband of her loose skirt. Then, suddenly, an ingenious thought came to her and her cloudy eyes sprang wide open. "Oh my god!" she cried, springing off Nephrite's lap. She busily adjusted her skirt and pulled her shirt back down. "Then Darien and Serena went missing at the same time?"

"Something like that," he grumbled. He stared longingly at his wife's bouncing… assets. So close…

"Oh stop pouting." Lita lifted up a small white box that he didn't notice before and set it before him. "It's your favorite: dark chocolate pie with raspberry-mint cream. Now, as I was saying…"

Still not completely placated but mouth watering in anticipation, Nephrite grudgingly accepted the heavenly-smelling dessert and prepared to dig in. Damn his sweet tooth.

"…so that must mean they're together!" Lita finished with a flourish. "Nephrite! Were you listening?"

"Uh huh," he mumbled around the mouthful of pie.

"Like I was _saying_. So Darien went to _Serena's_ concert, where he would most certainly meet her, or at least see her. Then they _both_ go disappearing around the same time, and they _both_ still haven't been found. Coincidence? I think not. Praise me, oh dear Mr. Watson."

Some of her words managed to get through to his chocolate-induced mind, and he chewed thoughtfully for a few moments. "Yes, but why would they disappear together? Darien has never shown any interest in a human woman before, except for feeding. And he would never take blood from an acquaintance of one of us. Unless she was…"

His startled brown eyes flew up to Lita's smug green ones. "After all these centuries. Maybe he's really found her."

"I know! What if he has? Oh this is wonderful!"

"But still rather troubling. Even if he has found her, why wouldn't he tell any of us? I understand that he might want some time alone, but for this long? Without any word? Besides, during that brief moment of contact, he seemed very tense and nervous."

"Nervous? Darien? Hah. The day I see Darien nervous is the day I decide that asparagus is delicious."

"Hm… Perhaps. I've sent Zoicite to check out Darien's apartment and the mansion to see if he's there. He should get back to me soon."

"In any case, if he really has found his true mate, there's going to be some interesting times ahead. I wonder what kind of person Serena is," Lita said thoughtfully.

"Regardless, she's going to have to be strong person, if she's with Darien. His is a difficult life, after all."

"I know, but still, I really hope it's true. After all this time… He deserves it." Lita sighed. "Anyways, gotta go love. Lapis should be just about waking up from her nap."

Nephrite stood up and caught Lita by the waist, swinging her into his arms and giving her a hard, passionate kiss. "We'll continue what we couldn't finish earlier tonight when I get home. With the pie," he added suggestively.

"It's a date." And with one last, promising smile, Lita disappeared in blink, with only the lingering smell of sugar as evidence of her visit.

He felt better already.

* * *

Darien had been outside, roaming through the trees as a large and powerful black wolf when he felt it. He had been racing through the trees, trying to calm down from the disturbing dream he had earlier when a powerful surge of fear and pain had radiated from his soul, nearly causing him to bend over in pain and shock.

_Serena…_His mind went blank in terror as he realized that these painful sensations were coming from Serena, and that his connection to her was causing him to feel the same things. Fragments of his dream tormented him, pierced him. He remembered the pain in her eyes before they went dead, the sight of her body fading before him, and the-

_No more! That was just a dream!_

He immediately shifted back to his human form and transported himself into his bedroom, where Serena was supposed to be resting. His wings snapped out and unfurled as his fangs lengthened and snarled. He felt the beast in him roar in outrage over whatever was causing his mate pain. He swiftly soared into the room, his body moving so quickly that his movement was like a mere blur. His menacing power spilled over and suffocated the room, wanting to fill every crack and crevice to find the enemy that had dared to trespass into his home and threaten Serena.

But what he saw simply astonished him.

* * *

Serena felt as if twin axes were being driven into her back, tearing through skin and bone. She could feel her skin being cut open and the blood dribbling down. She screamed and screamed until her voice was hoarse, until she collapsed onto her side and curled up into fetal position as the pain gradually began to subside.

She took in gasping breaths, tears streaming from her eyes. The pain was even worse than before when she went through the transition. So deep and agonizing that not even the blissful darkness would take her away. Suddenly she felt the presence of Darien in her mind, soothing her, taking the pain from her. She tried to shut him out, but the feeling of his comfort was too much to resist, and she gave in.

As she lie there, her back throbbing, she realized that her entire body was soaked in sunlight, yet the warmth felt nice and soothing. The pain wasn't from burns from the sun, but rather something entirely else.

Something white and soft drifted into her vision, the image blurring as her tears continued to flow and momentarily blinded her.

_A feather…_

* * *

He should've been used to this feeling of astonishment by now, considering that anything that had to do with Serena completely blew all norms out of the water. But this. Now _this_ really, _really_ confused him.

The sunlight streaming into the room nearly gave him a heart attack (in a manner of speaking), until he realized that Serena wasn't suffering from burns under the light. He almost didn't even see them until they twitched slightly.

"Please don't tell me I have fucking wings sprouting out of my back." Serena's voice was hoarse and still filled with pain, but she was okay. He appeared at her side, and doing a quick body scan, he saw that the bleeding had already stopped and that she was almost completely healed.

"Okay. I won't."

"Oh god. You gave me _wings_ too? You mentioned nothing about this!" Serena was desperately trying to ignore the soothing feeling of Darien's strong hand gently stroking her face and back, but failed.

"Trust me, I didn't expect this either," he said sardonically. "But I must say, they are extremely beautiful." He made one long stroke down the expanse of one wing and Serena unconsciously preened into his hand.

"Is the pain almost gone now?" Darien asked.

"Yes," Serena sighed. Darien had continued to stroke her wings, the feeling sending nice, warm tingles up and down her spine. _Oh, that feels good…Wait a sec. Reality check! You have WINGS damn it! Wake up woman!_

"Wait. Stop." He didn't, but he did look down at her and gave her his attention. Serena was still feeling too weak and tired to move away so she let him continue. But _only_ because she was too tired.

Yeah right.

"So tell me again, why the hell do I have a pair of giganto wings attached to my back? And why the hell do they hurt so fucking much?"

"I think it's because you weren't human."

"Uh, newsflash. I know that I'm not human anymore. I'm a _vampire._" The word still came out bitterly.

Ignoring that barb, Darien said, "I realize that. And I didn't say _aren't_ human, but _weren't_ human. You were not completely human even before your transition. Granted, you had mostly human blood flowing through your veins, but somewhere… You had a little _extra_ of something. I had considered this before, because of our rather… _Unusual_ bonding, but now I see that my suspicions were correct. Besides, wings are not a normal character for a vampire of your age."

"So then what was I?" she asked suspiciously.

When he told her, she really wished that she hadn't asked. Really, really, _really_ wished that she hadn't asked.

"Oh, no _way_!"

"Yes way."


	6. As My Lover

**A/N: **Oh man, you have no idea how difficult it was to start this chapter. Honestly, when I finished the last chapter, I didn't even know where I was going with it. It just seemed like a good way to go. But I'm glad I did, because I love the added drama. Although too much complexity tends to give me a major headache. Whatever. And I know it took me long to update… I can't say anything but… Sorry. :D. But enjoy my lovelies!

Standard **WARNING: **Rated "M" for Mature. Duh. So if you're not mature enough, don't read it. Ha ha. Or something. I dunno. Just enjoy. :D

* * *

_**Crescendo**_

Chapter 6: As My Lover

It was a beautiful winter day in the month of January. New snow had just fallen, but that day, the sun had chosen to accompany it, adding its beautiful radiance to the glittering snow.

Of course, being New York City, about fifteen seconds later, the "beautiful" and "glittering" snow was either turned into a gray slosh, melted down with salt, plowed out of the way, or yellow.

Ah, the beauty of city life.

But in the King's private world, where all was pristine and perfect, the snow lay untouched, as beautiful and pure as the early morning golden light that flooded the grounds. The thick surrounding of trees that blocked the home from the view of prying eyes were calm, and only moved the slightest bit as the winter breeze slithered and whispered through the heavy green branches. Even in the gardens, the bushes were bare as the multitude of flora slept for the season, waiting expectantly for spring to approach. The dense blanket of white added tranquility to it all, masking the emptiness with stillness, as if the moment was frozen, and would remain so until the flowers would bloom.

Amidst it all, a powerful castle dominated the silent world. Its multitude of glittering windows and thrusting turrets and spikes pierced the air, its presence imposing and grand. The stone façade was stripped bare of the vines that would crawl up come spring, and its surface was smooth yet formidable.

In all, it was magnificent; there was no other way to describe it. The flawlessly manicured gardens and landscape; the grand, majestic castle; just the sheer _perfection_ of it all-

It was a beautiful prison.

* * *

In the left wing, all the way to the end of the hall, after a right turn, and past four more doors, Serena was curled under the warm silk sheets, the fire blazing away, and the sunlight streaming in.

Four days had passed. Four days since she last touched a piano. Four days since she'd last seen or talked to her friends. Four days since had been taken prisoner.

How many hours had she lain in this bed? After Darien's shocking revelation, Serena finally decided that she needed a break. The events of the past four days had her feeling more anger, fear, shock, arousal, sadness and probably every other emotion possible than she had in her entire life. She just needed to stop, recharge, and figure things out.

_Alrighty, first off, _Serena thought, organizing the events of the past few days, _I'm a vampire, but a really abnormal one. Second, Darien has made me his mate or whatever. Third, apparently before all this, I was a-_

Her thoughts broke off. It still completely blew her mind. All this time, she thought that she was just a normal, average human being, but it turned out that she actually wasn't.

In fact, according to Darien, she apparently was part demon.

Demon.

Demon.

Demon. As in, demon. Like, _demon_ demon.

_It makes sense. The unusual potency of your music, and the captivation that it holds; your unusual degree of power; your wings; and your strong defense against my own powers- no other being except a demon would be able to do such a thing. And even still, it would have to be a hell of strong one to stand a chance against me _(Serena noted that he had added that final sentence with a great sense of arrogance- the bastard).

Serena groaned in misery. Out of all things, why a _demon_? Why couldn't she have been something… Well, _nicer _(and here came her outraged vanity and sense of morality)? Like, for example, part faerie, or part angel. Demon just sounded so… Menacing. And Evil.

_Well no one says that you __**have**__ to believe everything Darien says. I mean, who died and made him ki- Er. I mean, he can't be right about__** everything.**_

Besides, who ever heard of a demon with _white_ wings? _Darien's a lot more demonic than me, especially with those scary black wings of his._

Serena curled her body tighter and wrapped herself more firmly within the covers. Ever since the day her wings had released, she would oftentimes feel a strange tingly sensation running across her shoulder blades and down her spine. It was like the wings itched to be released, to be free.

_Ha. The day Darien lets me go is the day that I'll release my wings. That fucking hurt like no other. No way do I want to go through that again. And with my luck, Darien will probably end up telling me that I'm also Harry Potter's sister or something._

She shut her eyes and settled comfortably in the giant bed. The exhaustion was seeping into her bones, the events of the past four days finally taking its toll on her body.

_I mean honestly, I was kidnapped, turned into a vampire, became Darien's matey-thing, got some weird red mark on my neck, passed out, had wings pop out of my back, and then to only find out that I have demon blood running through my veins. This has clearly been a very trying four days_, she thought grumpily to herself. "Damn that Darien. It's all his fucking fault." Her mind began to slowly fade and she began to slip away into the world of dreams. "I wish… I'd never… met… him…"

* * *

He would, Darien decided, have to develop some kind of immunity, or at least downgrade the potency of these troubling emotions.

They were making him weak. He was second guessing himself, when he shouldn't, faltering where he used to be confident; killing his drive and limiting his abilities- or, basically, making him so damn _human._

He _had_ once been a human, despite what most believed. Long ago, during the age of the powerful Assyrian empire, he had been the general of an unconquerable army. He battled long and hard against the Babylonians, and when it fell, planned to live long and prosper in his own beloved country. But even then he had been cold, harsh, and apathetic to all that stood in his way. Granted, he wasn't cruel leader, but cared naught of the fate of others, so long as their outcome was a product of justice and honor.

When had he ever felt pity, or remorse; especially for a woman? When did a person ever have the ability to bring him to his knees? When did he ever _beg_ for something he desired with all his being?

Never.

Women were a way to pass the time, to admire, and to use to relieve his stress and find pleasure. The only person that he submitted to was his King, and even then he could only manage a stiff bow.

And then he became a vampire. To this day, he could remember every single day of his existence as a vampire with perfect clarity, every memory perfectly preserved and stored in his mind; yet the day of his conversion, the day he became a vampire was a distant blur. He only had flashes of images and short clips of the first few days of his time as a newborn vampire. He only clearly remembered that when he awoke, he was buried deep within the ground, his body ringing with power and the urge for blood so strong that he thought he would go insane.

Unable to control his newly obtained powers and his ever incessant call for blood, he'd left his beloved country, after he'd wiped out an entire village during a insane rampage for blood. For decades he wandered, training his mind and body to always be in supreme control, until he was confident of his abilities and his powers had multiplied to even more immeasurable heights.

When he'd finally returned to his motherland, he returned to ruins. The Roman Empire was now in power, and had conquered the Assyrians and Babylonians centuries before. Yet he felt no remorse, no anger, nor an urge for revenge against the Romans. He was utterly cold. Empty.

But he preferred it that way.

He had the blood of hundreds of people on his hands, whether they were innocent or criminals, and by that point, he felt so dead that another thousand wouldn't even make him flinch. It had to be that way, lest he completely lose his sanity and all forms of rational behavior.

Yet now, emotions that he repressed even as a human and had completely disappeared during his time as a vampire were bursting forth to surface, completely throwing him out of sorts and astonishing him.

It was, to say the least, very dangerous.

It was a problem that needed resolving, yet the very root of his problem was Serena.

Well, fuck.

* * *

Serena was getting seriously tired of just moping around in her room. Ever since she started her self- proclaimed isolation from Darien, she had stayed in her room, refusing to leave and acknowledge that he had won. Unfortunately, she was beginning to get fidgety and her fingers were starting to twitch from inactivity. Not only that, she just freaking hungry.

_Apparently vampires need more than blood to sustain themselves. Or maybe it's this 'demon' side of me, _she thought darkly.

"Bah! Whatever! I am _not_ going to let this get to me," she said to herself. She quickly showered, already feeling better as the hot, steamy water loosened all the tense muscles and soothed her tired body. She still didn't have any of her clothes, but found a large thick black cotton robe hanging on the bathroom door.

_Yeesh. Doesn't this guy own anything in any other color than black? He seriously needs to widen his variety in clothing._ Pulling on the warm robe, she was immediately engulfed by a purely masculine scent, wild yet sophisticated in its uniqueness. She suppressed the urge to just pull the material to her nose and take in deep breaths, and instead chose to mutter unpleasant things about the robe's owner.

Serena knew that her attitude was childish, but she couldn't help herself. To be honest, nearly all of her killing rage had faded, leaving behind only the disgruntled, annoyed remnants of her unhappiness. She just couldn't keep a grudge—she never could, ever since she was child. It annoyed her to no end that she wasn't more like her cousin Mina, who could carry on a grudge for a lifetime times a hundred. But that didn't mean that she'd forgiven Darien. Oh no, Darien number one on her shit list, even outranking her old chemistry teacher from high school and the boss from hell she had a while back.

And she'd be damned if she ever would.

_Hm. Scratch that. I already am damned. Thank _you_, very much Darien the bastard._

Yet, honestly, she felt, well, perhaps not relieved, but a very small, miniscule, _minute _sense of appreciation that Darien had told her about her interesting "heritage." She much preferred knowing the truth and finding a way to live with it rather than just leading a life of ignorance, even if the truth was rather bizarre and disturbing.

But of course, she'd never tell _him_ that.

* * *

When Mina woke up, night had fallen and the moon was partially covered with clouds. Confused, she realized that somehow she'd ended up in her bed. Groaning, she rubbed her eyes and buried herself deeper into the mattress. And then she noticed that somehow, her body seemed to have grown an extra arm.

A rather tan, muscular looking arm at that.

She sat up quickly clutching the covers to her ( _Naked? When the freak did that happen?_) chest and followed the length of the arm to see the very naked, very sexy, and oh-so-irresistible body that it was attached to.

Kunzite's grin was positively wolfish, especially with his unnaturally long canines glinting at her. "Good morning. Or rather, I should say, 'night'."

Mina said nothing and only stared blankly at his face. Then lower. Then shot her eyes back up, blushing furiously. "Could you please cover yourself? That's,"she waved her hand around in the generally area without looking at him, "inappropriate."

He grabbed her waving hand firmly by the wrist and tugged her forward, jerking her hand off the sheet and baring her body to him. He pulled her on top of him until her body lied completely pressed against his, with no barriers between. Mina immediately began to struggle and tried to push herself off, but Kunzite merely wrapped one arm around her waist and the other up her back, his fingers plunging into her hair and gently running through. And if his growing length against her thigh was any indication, her squirming wasn't helping.

"If I recall, we used do a lot of things that were inappropriate. And you enjoyed it. Immensely."

The fact that her face was now burning as bright as a cherry tomato did nothing to keep the indignant tone out of her voice, despite the extremely awkward situation. "That was then. This is now. And I want to know what happened. _Now._"

In a flash, Kunzite switched their positions, so that she was caught under him, his arms firmly wrapped around her body. Delicately, seductively, Kunzite stroked the sensitive skin on the side of her neck with the tip of his tongue. "Do you not remember? You took me... And I took you." His voice ended with on husky whisper, his elongated fangs delicately brushing against the vein pulsing in her neck.

She was melting. Weakening. Like a marshmallow in hell. She was doomed. _No! Be strong Mina! Remember what he is. What he's done!_

_What he's done to you._

The cursed images that she thought she had finally overcome began to float to the surface. Using the last vestiges of her self-control, she pushed away from the delicious temptation known as Kunzite and grabbed a sheet on her way up. Apparently, her sudden change in attitude caught him off guard, as she was able to push him off relatively easily. _Or he let me up… Since he knew he could just take me again._

_Or because I'd just willingly return._

* * *

Kunzite could already sense Mina's withdrawal, her bright eyes shuttering over, concealing her emotions and thoughts from him.

He'd been alive for centuries, yet the one year that they were apart had felt like a millennia. His heart ached seeing her so different, yet still so much the same. Her stubborn, stormy defiance was the same, and the way her ears were always the first to turn red when she was embarrassed was the same.

The way she moaned beneath his lips was the same. Wrenchingly so. The way she melted in his arms was the same. Achingly so. The intense amount of love that he'd always felt for her was still the same. Painfully so.

But now she didn't laugh as freely as before, nor did she smile as often. Her thoughts were a mystery, her emotions carefully concealed behind those damned secret eyes. Their permanent bond should've made it impossible for her to stay away, yet she had done so for an entire year, fighting the constant pull, the insane lust and attraction, and it had taken its toll on her. His stomach clenched in pain and his soul grieved for the dark shadows he saw under her eyes. The pallor of her usually golden skin made him want to offer all his power, his wealth, his status in exchange for a reversal of time.

Just to go back one year. Just to go back and change what had happened.

Just to hear her say "I love you" one last time.

Even now, as he tried to re- forge the bond between their thoughts, she shut him out effectively, and he felt as empty and devoid as he had before he met her that one fateful, blessed day.

He had been in Moscow, checking up on the vampire factions that were under the rule of his King, making sure that all was well and under control (and of course, they were- no one dared to piss off Darien), when he'd heard a loud, alarmed shout and a small but slim body slamming into his. He'd barely felt the impact, but he did notice one thing. The blood. The warm and sweet smelling liquid coated his hands, spurring an instantaneous hunger that had gripped his throat and his unexpected erection.

God, just the thought of it was making him hot again.

Eventually all the screaming and chaos of the busy street broke through his lust-clouded mind and forced him to assess the situation. He gently laid the bleeding woman on the ground to examine her wound and found that a small bullet had gone through her right shoulder. The wound wasn't fatal, but the amount of blood loss she'd already experienced was rather alarming. He brushed the soft golden hair away from the woman's face, and sucked in a sharp breath when all of a sudden, his world tilted then steadied, his soul exploded and in its place a new, warmer, purer one bloomed in his heart. _Mine. My mate. My love._ The words raced across his mind at dizzying speeds.

Of course, it was really rather inappropriate that he was getting a boner over a potentially dying woman, so he decided that he needed to get them out of there, fast. He couldn't exactly change her right there on the side of the street, with all the people beginning to crowd around him, during the daytime, so instead he cast an illusion over them, so that when he swiftly bit his wrist and pressed his blood against her mouth, it looked more as if he was just checking her pulse.

When the mystery woman began to respond, her lips kissing his wrist and her tongue swirling over his vein, the scent of her blood plus the added heady sensation of her mouth suckling his wrist was too much for him to bear, he swiftly lifted her up into his arms and began to stride forward to the long black limousine that he'd been about to step into, before all this had happened.

He cared not for the gaping people that were openly staring at the bleeding woman, but he knew that if he didn't clean this mess up, it just prove to be bothersome later. Before he stepped into the car, he spread his powers to encompass a quarter-mile radius and swiftly blurred the minds of all the people for the past 10 minutes. He figured that was the best he could do in such short time. Besides, he had more important issues currently lying in his arms.

Beautiful issues.

Bloody issues.

God he was a sick, sick man.

By the time they'd reached his penthouse, he'd managed to rein his libido under (relative) control, and figured he could go for at least a couple more hours without being overwhelmed with the urge to jump the unconscious woman, unless she did that…

The blonde woman moaned deeply in her sleeping state, her body twisting around in discomfort and distress.

…moan thing.

He cursed under this breath and averted his eyes for a moment, taking a deep breath before gathering her up in his arms to take her up the elevator.

Then, up in his luxurious room, on the most blessed day of his life, he saw her eyes. She'd opened those beautiful, clear, luminous blue-gray eyes, and he saw her, truly saw her.

He didn't hear ocean waves crashing in the background nor did he feel lightning strike him in wonder, but rather, it had been quiet and peaceful. The most peace and tranquility he'd ever felt in his entire life. Like the world had been spinning crazily on its axis and had just settled in perfect harmony. He felt like a whole, and realized the emptiness that he'd not known to exist was filled, just filled with the perfect balance of _her_.

And just from those eyes. Those beautiful eyes.

Eyes that once regarded him with love and trust, and now remained averted, and shadowed.

Yea, that time machine would come in real handy right about now.

* * *

Day four and half was beginning to get to her.

Serena simply _refused_ to stay cooped up in her room any longer. She'd read about three different books, taken two baths, tidied up the room (that was how freaking _bored_ she was), and sulked outside on the porch, grudgingly admiring the beautiful landscape covered in fresh snow.

She stalked over to the expansive closet and threw open the doors. For a moment she merely gaped in wonder and her "firm" resolve to hate Darien for all time wavered for a moment. Silently she took three steps back and quietly closed the closet doors. She squatted down and buried her face in her hands and counted to ten, shutting her eyes tight. She then let out a sharp breath and straightened her spine. She opened the double doors once more, preparing herself for the impending shock.

Yep. It was still there.

Rows upon rows and columns of _shoes_. Now Serena prided herself on not being a very materialistic person, but she had her weaknesses too. And all the pretty, preeeeetttyyy shoes just beckoning her forward was very much one of them. The other lay in the large basket, filled to the brim with Godiva chocolate and caramels, candy drops and luscious chocolate covered strawberries.

And not only that, about half of Darien's wardrobe had disappeared, and instead, had been replaced with a lot of designer clothing that looked suspiciously a lot like her size.

Oh god, Darien was _such _a bastard.

"Hmph! Think you can get away with just a f-few s-s-s-shoes and some clothing and c-chocolate?"

_Yes, I think he can._

_**Oh you shut it!**_

She threw herself into the closet, painfully ignoring the basket of sin that was just _there_, smack dab in the middle of the room- er, closet. Serena quickly grabbed the first pair of jeans and shirt that her hands landed on, and quickly hustled her sorely tempted ass out of room of sin, that contained the shoes of sin, and the basket of sin, that had the sinful chocolate.

_Sneaky bastard._

At this point, she hadn't even give much thought as to how Darien had even gotten in all that stuff in there. Considering what she'd seen him do so far, she figured getting a bunch of close in the closet was small beans to him.

_And not to mention, he's felt you up more than enough times to accurately know your size by now._

Somehow, that thought came a lot more smug than outraged as she had intended.

Quickly donning the clothing, she slowly opened the door, grateful that it opened smoothly and without a sound. Walking out into the empty corridor, she peeked around the frame to see if there were any unwanted butthead vampires (-cough-Darien-cough-) lurking around. Finding the coast clear, she crept down the hall, testing all the doors she could find. All she wanted was something, anything that could get her in contact with the outside world. Even she didn't know how to escape, she at least wanted to let her family know that she was (somewhat) okay. Finally, after about the eleventh door, she found one unlocked room.

It was a study of some sort, and she had a sinking feeling that it belong to a certain _someone_. The deeply masculine tones and the furniture of the room looked familiar to that of her room.

_Psh. Whatever works._ She just really hoped that Darien wasn't planning on returning any time soon. She quickly set about searching the room and on the desk. After a few moments of frustration, she finally managed to find a small, sleek cell phone plugged in and charging.

"Success!" she crowed gleefully.

Immediately, she called her apartment, hoping to catch Mina. "Please, please, be home. Please be home. Damnit!" Next, she tried Raye's cell phone, only to angrily press the end button when she got her machine as well. She waited a few moments and tried calling them both again, and when they didn't pick up, left messages telling them the Cliffnotes version of what had happened (although she left out the whole vampire-King-wing-demon thing).

Serena was running out of ideas. She didn't really know who else she could that she could trust. Finally, she remembered Amy. _If there's one person intelligent and trustworthy enough to somehow find me, it's Amy._ Taking a deep breath, she dialed Amy's number at her office.

"Pick up, pick up, pick up, pick-"

"Hello, this is Amy Wilde."

"Amy! Thank god!"

"Serena? Is that you? What's wrong? What happened? People have been looking for days! Are you okay? Where are you?" Amy rambled on, her tone shocked, yet relieved.

"Stop. Don't worry, I'm okay. Listen, I have a lot of stuff to tell you, but not much time to say it, so listen carefully. A lot of this might sound strange, but you need to come and find me, okay?"

"Shouldn't I get the police or something?"

"I don't think that would do much good. You see, the person who kidnapped me has a lot of power and influence, not to mention a crudload of money. I just need you find where I am first, then try and get the authorities or something."

"What do you mean? You don't know where you are? Who kidnapped you? Wait, you were _kidnapped_? Serena! Are you sure you're okay?" Amy's voice was incredulous, and probably with good reason. This was a lot to take in at once.

"Okay, Amy shut up for sec, and let me tell you everything. It was after the concert, when-" Suddenly, Serena broke off, a strange and foreign feeling running through her veins, alerting all her senses. She didn't know why she felt it, nor how she knew what it meant, all she knew was that Darien was somewhere close. Not in the room, but probably in the corridor, heading towards her.

"Serena? When what?"

"Shit. I don't have time to explain everything. He's almost here. Just know that I'm unharmed, well-fed, housed, and safe. Just find out where the fuck Darien Shields lives. I think it might be somewhere in New York, but on a wide and open property. Lots of trees and stuff. Please Amy, do that and try to find me."

"What? Shields? You mean the CEO-"

"Yes, yes. I know it's hard to believe but it's the truth. I have to go now. Please Amy. I don't know when I might get another chance to get in contact with you again."

"But, but, Serena…"

"I'm sorry. Bye." Serena quickly shoved the phone back to where it originally was and scrabbled across the room towards the door. The funny feeling was getting stronger, and she could feel it affecting her body. Not so much in a physical, negative way, but more like, she was getting excited to see him, and her body was welcoming his presence.

"Shit-ake Mushrooms. Fudge. Double nuts." By the sounds of his footsteps, Darien was coming towards the office room, and Serena was still trapped. Frantically looking around for a place to hide, she dove behind the large sofa that was in the corner of the room. She held her breath as she heard his footsteps in the room. She heard some papers rustle, some drawers being opened and closed, the scratching of a pen, and finally, the steps of his receding footsteps and the quiet click of the door being closed.

She let down a breath of relief and stood up from her crouching position behind the couch. With a surprising grace, she hoisted herself up and over the couch and lay prone on back on the plush cushions. She closed her eyes and taking a deep breath, could smell a familiar subtle and masculine scent emanating from the couch. _Damn him. He's everywhere!_

"Well considering it _is_ my house, I figured that I had free reign of the place."

Serena's eyes sprung open and with a shriek, she snapped up, as if hinged at the waist, narrowly missing Darien's head by millimeters.

"Although, it is also now _your_ house, so you really needn't go about hiding behind couches and such," Darien continued in a dry voice. Staring at her beautifully flushed, wide-eyed, open mouth face, he laughed aloud, and tenderly brushed a stray strand of hair curling against her cheek. He gently cupped her chin with his hand and before she could even blink, he swooped in for a quick, playful kiss on her lips. "This is not a prison. You can go wherever you'd like, even my office. No doors will ever be locked to you. The house is full of interesting rooms –and libraries- that I'm sure you'd like to see."

Serena's ears had perked at the word "libraries" (plural!) but she struggled not to show a response on her face. "And the outside gate; is that open too?"

"Of course. The gardens are always beautiful during anytime of the year."

"No, I mean, the entrance gate. Am I _permitted_ to leave _your_ property?"

Silence. "As long as I am with you."

"I see."

Brushing by his body, she stood up and walked away.

* * *

"Pick up, pick up, pick up, pick _up_!" Amy chanted into her cell phone, as if her desperate pleas might somehow reach Mina through telepathy. "YES! Mina?"

There was a pause. "No, I'm sorry, but Mina's unable to come to the phone right now. May I take a message?" Amy was momentary taken aback by the deep masculine voice that had answered, the situation called for certain things to be overlooked.

"Um yes. But, do you know when she'll be back? I really need to talk to her."

"She's taking a shower right now, but I'll have her call you back when she's done right away."

"Okay, that's fine." It was on the tip of her tongue to ask who he was and what he was doing there while Mina was taking a shower, but she didn't have time for details. "Well if you could just tell her that Amy called, and that I found Serena, that would be wonderful."

"Yes, of course. I will."

"Thank you! Bye!"

"Goodbye."

Well, whoever, the man was, he sure as hell had a sexy voice. _Go Mina!_

* * *

Staring at Mina's small, bright pink phone, Kunzite registered the new information he had just received. _So… They finally found her. This is big news._ He contemplated whether or not he should wait till Mina was done with her shower to tell her. He ran his tongue over his teeth.

Mina was really very worried. Even if she was in the middle of a hot, steamy shower… With soap and water running over those beautiful curves… Those long, endless legs… Darkening her hair to spun gold…

She'd want to know right away.

Yeah. She would.

He smiled and walked towards the bathroom door.

* * *

Amy finally reached the very edge of Darien Shield's property. His land was large and encompassed most of the area, extending into the forest and over several thousand acres. She had pulled some strings and called in some favors to find his address, and it was no easy task. Shield's was known to be a very private man, and save for a few tabloid pictures with some beautiful woman on his arm, not many records of him were open to the public. Most social events he held were either located in his high-end penthouse apartment in New York City, or in one of his many five-star, luxury hotels.

And now Serena was saying that she was kidnapped by him.

She didn't know Serena to be a liar, and she trusted her with her life, but this was a bit much. _Oh well, we'll soon see exactly what's going on._ The drive was long and confusing, the roads winding and running deep into the forest. But soon, she could see the top of a large, imposing stone mansion. Although most of the house was hidden behind trees, as she stopped her car in front of great black iron gate, she could tell that the main property was gigantic.

Wrapping her thick coat and scarf around herself more tightly, she stepped out of her car and swung her purse over her shoulder. There was no intercom, no doorbell, no security box. How was she supposed to contact the house?

_I just need you find where I am first, then try and get the authorities or something. _Serena's whispered and rushed words came to mind.

_She doesn't mean that… She wants me to break in, does she?_ _Oh god. I really shouldn't have come alone._ Amy rubbed her cold, ungloved hands together and nervously stared up at the tall gate.

"Well now, hello there." A deep and dark sensual voice sent shivers running up and down her body and startled her out of thoughts.

Her heart racing, she spun around, only to come face to face with the most beautiful and gorgeous looking man she'd ever seen.

The mystery man slowly and blatantly looked her up and down, and gave her a wicked and unapologetic smile.

She felt her entire body heat up.

"Hope I didn't scare you. I'm Zoicite Mason." He extended one large, tanned hand amicably and gave her that dangerously sexy, knockout grin.

He had a dimple in his left cheek.

She _really_ shouldn't have come alone.

**

* * *

A/N:** Ah! Finally! Done with the 6th chapter! :D Almost 12 pages! A new record. J And we finally meet Zoicite… Our last but not least couple. 3 yay!


	7. Eternal

**A/N: **Thank you again for all your WONDERFUL reviews. Without them, I would've probably had abandoned the story at like, Ch.3, or something.

Again, **WARNING: **Rated "M" for Mature. In other words, if you're _im_mature, you may not want to read it. It's not like NC-17 or anything, just for more mature readers. Yep. :)

* * *

_**Crescendo**_

Chapter 7: Eternal

Amy felt a deep sense of foreboding.

Like a, bum, bum, BUM!- type of foreboding. Not a very a good thing mind you, especially when you're a just-slightly-more-than-five-feet woman face to face with a wall of muscle that was at least six feet.

At _least_.

Granted, it was a _very_ gorgeous wall of muscle. Attached to a head that all but shouted "I'm sexy and fucking hot. You know it, I know it, and I'll catch you when you jump me."

Amy could feel her feet just itching to move.

She stared at the powerful looking hand extended towards her. Would it crush hers if she shook hands with him?

Deciding that she shouldn't lose her manners despite the man's intimidating presence, she nervously placed her hand in his and softly said in a relatively steady voice, "Amy Wilde." But instead of grasping her hand in his and shaking it as Amy had expected, the man, Zoicite (what an interesting name!), gently clasped it in his and bending over slightly, raised her hand to his lips and kissed it softly.

"It's a pleasure, Amy." Straightening, he grinned at her. Belatedly, Amy realized that Zoicite still held her hand in his.

"Ah… Er… Yes. You too," she fumbled, gently attempting to extract her hand from his with subtlety. When he still refused to let go of her hand, she began to tug harder. But he didn't seem to catch the hint. Instead, he covered their joined hands with his other hand, and smoothly tucked her arm under his, bringing their bodies closer.

"Sir! Mr. Mason! What do you think you're doing?" Amy cried, shocked. The nerve of the man to take such liberties! Despite the fact that she quite enjoyed the sensation of his long, hard body pressed against the side of hers… _Ack! That's __**beside**__ the point!_

"Please, _Amy_, call me Zoicite. I insist. And what I am about to do is accompany a beautiful lady maneuver her way through the grounds—which is what you came here to do, I gather?"

"It is _Ms. Wilde_, and I don't need your help! I just wanted to see if anyone was home first. So, I suggest you release my arm, and go along your separate way." Amy finished her prim declaration with a haughty raise of her chin. She could feel her face grow warm under the intense stare of the handsome man, his bright green eyes staring directly into hers, entrancing, hypnotizing.

"Alright, I shall go. But first…" Before she could make a sound, a movement, he grasped her chin with his fingers and swooped down, softly brushing his lips against the delicate skin of her neck. "You smell so… _wonderful_."

Amy shivered at the breathy, aroused tones of Zoicite, and against her better intentions, began to feel her body relax into his and her eyes shutter closed.

Then he did something completely unexpected.

She felt something sharp and piercing bite into the side of the neck, and before she could cry out in pain and alarm, she was overcome with sensations of pleasure and lust. Zoicite moaned at her neck.

_**Sweet… Soft… More… Delicious… Mine**__. _Amy heard the broken thoughts racing through her head, although she didn't know where they were coming from. All she could do was just lie there, limp in his arms.

The rational part of her was screaming, _"Oh my goodness gracious, he is drinking my __**blood**__"_ and the other completely not sane part of was groaning in pleasure, _"Damn, he is fucking HOT! Enjoy it girl, and hope that it happens again, and SOON!"_

But this of course, was completely inappropriate.

_But then again, he's so HOT!_

Zoicite smiled against her soft neck upon hearing the jumble of conflicting thoughts racing through Amy's mind. He forced himself to bring his head up, but not before swiping the two puncture holes close with a long sweep of his tongue. The taste of her, so unique, so clean, so delicious, nearly tempted him to bite her again, but he wanted her to remain conscious so he could observe and talk to her more. Besides, now that he had taken her blood, he'd be able to find her anytime.

It was strange, but the thought of her ever leaving him made him feel… Well, fucking pissed off as hell. It was probably just because she was the most delicious and beautiful thing he'd ever had. He'd never felt so sated so quickly and so adequately in such a short amount of time.

He'd keep her.

"You'll _keep_ me? Excuse me? Who the hell- I mean, _heck _do you think you are?"

And for the first time in his life, Zoicite was at a loss for words.

* * *

The days seemed to drag on for Raye.

First, she still had no idea where Serena was, and she was about to nearly go out of her mind. Second, she had to make a decision whether or not to die. Well, that is, whether or not she wanted to be a vampire.

_To be or not to be –a vampire- that is the question, _she thought amusedly. Oh the answer seemed easy. After all, of course she wanted to spend the rest of the life with Jadeite. But the thing holding her back was much more complex. Her life for one was on the line. Next, and more importantly, was her friends and family. Jadeite had been clear and blunt about the faults of turning. You would have to cut all ties with everyone you knew, to either wipe their minds or be presumed dead. There could be no contact, no explanation, and especially no revealing the truth- the existence vampires.

She sighed and rubbed her tired eyes. She hadn't been getting much sleep lately because of her dilemma, and the one person she could talk to, Serena, had disappeared. The timing of things was starting to give her a massive headache. She could feel it creeping up, the ache that starting at her temples and that was slowly starting to spread to her forehead.

She stepped into the elevator of her apartment complex, her eyes already shut before the doors closed, her head leaning back onto the mirrored walls. The elevator dinged, and the doors almost closed on her before she remembered to get out. Her heels clacking unenthusiastically down the hall, Raye trudged along, sighing with relief when she finally opened the door, shut it, and fell onto the couch before her. Except instead of hitting the soft, plushy cushions as she expected, she fell onto a strange lumpy thing.

It shrieked.

Scratch that- a strange, _human_, lumpy thing.

Swearing, Raye leaped back off the couch, reaching behind her to the umbrella stand to grab some sort of weapon.

The intruder was tangled underneath the couch's throw blanket, and attempted to claw itself back to the surface. Raye saw a flash of blond hair, and held her breath as the person desperately dragged the blanket off. It was-

"_Mina_? What on earth? Why- How- Are you okay?" Dropping her 'weapon', Raye hurried forward to help a much disheveled looking Mina up.

Rubbing the sleepiness from her eyes, Mina said drowsily, "I called you but you didn't answer, so I came here to wait for you, but I fell asleep. I didn't get much sleep last night," she admitted ruefully with a suspicious red tint on her ears. Raye decided that the blush called for further analysis, but later. There were more important matters at hand.

"So? Any news? Did you hear anything about Serena yet?"

"Actually, I did. Did you check your cell phone's messages yet?"

"No, I couldn't find my phone this morning so I had to leave without it. Why? Did Serena call?"

"Yup. And left a very interesting message behind for us as well. Not only that, Amy called this morning, saying that she'd found Serena."

" She 'found' Serena? How strange. I wonder where she was. Did you call Amy back?"

"Yes, but it went directly to voicemail, and that was when I decided to come here."

Raye paused for a moment, a thoughtful expression on her face. "Do you still have the message from Serena? I'd like to hear it."

"Yeah, I saved it. Hold on for sec and I'll put it on speaker."

Both women were quiet as they heard the phone crackle until Serena's familiar voice came on. "Hey Mina, it's Serena. I don't have much time, but I just wanted to say I'm safe, unharmed, and okay. By the way, you and Raye both REALLY need to start answering your phones more often. Anyways, I hope you get this message soon, and come get me. This guy named Darien Shields; yes, THAT Darien Shields, the evidently psycho but rich one, kidnapped me after the concert four days ago. I'm at his house, but I don't know where it is. It might be somewhere in New York, but I'm not sure. I think it's in the middle of a forest or something. Anyways, a lot of… weird stuff happened and but I think I'm still perfectly sane. In any case, I'm okay now, but please! Help me! I'll try and call again if I can get the chance. Just make sure that-"

The message was cut off, as the time limit had ended. Raye and Mina just stared at each other, Raye's look of utter confusion mirroring the same expression that Mina wore when she had first heard the message.

"_What the hell_?"

Mina smirked. "I told you it was interesting. Something like this would only happen to Serena."

"How unbelievably true. Oh Serena, what have you gotten yourself into this time?" Raye sighed, sitting on the couch next to Mina.

"Well, at least we know that she's unharmed. As for her safety… We better try and find her as soon as possible."

"Do you think we should call the police?" Mina asked.

"Let me talk to Jadeite first. He's good friends with Darien, so I'm sure he could explain what's going on."

"Raye… Speaking of Jadeite… I hear you're engaged?" Mina asked tentatively.

Raye beamed with happiness. "Yes. About a week ago. Did Serena tell you?"

"Yes, and congratulations. I can see how happy you are. But the thing is… I was wondering… Well. Does he… That is to say… Erm. Well… Do you believe in vam-" Mina was abruptly interrupted when the two women heard a sharp knock at the door.

"Wait a sec Mina. Hold that thought." She got up to answer the door. Mina had this weird tingly feeling running up her back. Not unpleasant; on the contrary, rather comforting, but too entirely familiar. This unusual feeling usually meant that-

"Jadeite! Kunzite! What a pleasant surprise. What are you doing here?"

Mina sighed. _Stupid tingly-ness. Go away! Gah! _But her body betrayed her. She couldn't help the way her heartbeat would increase, the warmness that spread throughout her body. And she just _knew_ that Kunzite had probably picked up on it already, and would probably use it to his advantage. That smug bastard.

Jadeite grabbed Raye around the waist, pulling her against him and kissing the top of her head. Smiling down at her, he said, "Well not only was I getting lonely after you left, we have some important news for you." His gaze flicked over to Mina. "And Mina." His gaze sharpened, and his nose twitched slightly. His blue eyes flew over to Kunzite, who was leaning against the door frame, his arms crossed and his mouth half-smiling and half-smirking.

Mina's eyes narrowed. _Wipe that look off your face._

_**But I can't help it. Seeing your beautiful smiling face just makes me want to smile**__. _His smiled widened and his eyes crinkled at the corners.

_Oh shove it. Just because we- we- Whatever-ed last night… Get over it. Psh. _She rolled her eyes and with a stubborn and indignant "hmph", looked away.

_**We also "whatever-ed this morning in the shower. Don't forget.**_

Silence.

"Oh that's right, Jadeite, you met Mina last time at Serena's house, right?"

"Mina? So you're_ the_ Mina. The Mina who was the reason for Kunzite's horrible temper for the past year as well as his mysterious disappearance last night? Who would've thunk?" Jadeite asked laughingly. "I must say, this is quite the coincidence."

"Huh?" Confused, Raye looked at Mina, then at Kunzite. "Do you two already know each other?"

Jadeite laughed aloud. "You can say that. They're mates, love."

Her eyes widening in surprise, Raye whirled around and stared at him in shock. "Mates? But wouldn't that mean that Mina is-"

"A vampire? Sure does." Frowning, Jadeite said, "Raye, you didn't know?"

Both Raye and Mina stared at him in shock, and then after a heartbeat, simultaneously shouted, "NO!"

* * *

BORED. She was so BORED!

Serena sighed, slumped on the plush couch in her (and Darien's… psh- whatever) room. Her hand was fisted under her chin and one leg was tucked under her, with the other swinging slowly back and forth. She looked outside the windows, the moonlight streaming in.

She'd discovered that after an hour of tossing and turning, sleeping during the night was a near impossibility, short of knocking herself on the head with a blunt object (which, even then, would take a lot of effort, considering her newfound strength). So, with a frustrated moan, she flung the covers off and stomped towards the closet and got dressed.

Now, she had no idea what to do. She hated being bored like this. Not only that, she was getting restless, her fingers itchy. And, she TONS of questions. Questions that only one person in particular could answer.

Damn it.

Experimentally, she carefully searched her mind for that presence that seemed to always be there as a part of her. That string that seemed to connect them and bind them at all times. A shadow in her mind.

_**Yes?**_

Crap. Hastily, she responded without thinking, _Oh, er, um, I was just wondering how to get to the… kitchen._

_**If you're hungry, I'd be more than happy to provide some nourishment.**_

She could _totally_ see his smirk. And the worst thing was, she could feel herself salivating at the thought of that rich, red liquid sliding down her throat.

_Ah, no, thanks. The kitchen?_

_**I can just have something sent up to the room. Did you want something in particular?**_

_Well, no, but- Wait, does that mean I can still eat normal food?_ Serena perked up at the thought.

_**In a sense, yes. You can consume regular food, and taste it just as before, but it will not in anyway fulfill your hunger or thirst. **_

_Really? _Now things were looking up.

_**Really. But you must be careful. Too much will make your body sick. You'll need blood to digest it. But the kitchen is down the stairs, the second door on the right in the left wing.**_

_Kay! Thanks. _Elated by this new bit of news, Serena jumped up and hurried off in search of the kitchen. She seriously craved pizza. Hopefully even Darien had some leftover pizza she could reheat. _But wait, I can eat normal food (kinda), I can stand the sunlight, my fangs only pop out on command… I could totally just pass for a human. I could live, eat, sleep just as before… But with just a few adjustments, that is. _Serena mused over this new epiphany, but thoughts stuttered to an end when she stumbled upon a room. Not the kitchen.

Down the stairs, second door on the right in the… right wing. No, she didn't find the kitchen, but something infinitely better.

"Oh…" Serena breathed. She felt the world tilt, then straighten. _Finally._ She felt at peace with herself, the inner turmoil calming. This was her element, her world. The one thing she knew inside and out and had no qualms about.

The room was large, not quite as large as her bedroom, but with much higher ceilings and a grand crystal chandelier in the center that caught the moonlight. The windows stretched from floor to ceiling, and exposed the winter wonderland outside. It was like being in a snow globe, from the inside looking out. Fresh snow drifted down, blanketing the ground with another layer of white froth. Anywhere there were no windows, mirrors covered the walls from bottom to the top. The glowing moon cast delicate shadows in the large room, the marble floors catching each and every one of them.

And in the center of the room, unhindered by any excess furniture in the room, completely isolated, was a piano. A beautifully carved, concert grand piano. It was dove white, with mother-of-pearl inlays that shined in the moonlight.

Almost in a trance, Serena seemingly drifted towards it. It was, quite simply, the most beautiful piano she had ever seen. Steinway, Zimmermann, Bösendorfer; she had played them all, yet none of them ever had the same beauty and elegance that this… Piano seemed too plain a word… _Work of art_ had.

She sat on the cushioned bench and lovingly stroked the top of the keys.

It was like coming home, or a long drink of cold water after days of thirst. Instinctively, her fingers spread and readied themselves to play. She pressed a single note and the even, crisp note sang through the silent and still night.

She played.

She played and played to her heart's content. She played till she emptied out her soul, played until her heart sang with joy, played until tears threatened to come to her eyes, and fingers began to cramp. Oh she played until her fingers could play no more, and slowed down to a sad, soothing sonata. And finally, she wept.

She had cried in anger, in pain, in sorrow, but now she cried tears of joy. The relief that had spread throughout her body was unbelievable. Every crazy improbability in her life at the moment melted away and was replaced with a quiet, healing embrace.

Serena stared down at the keys, her hands lightly fisted in her lap. She had sensed him before she even heard him.

"Beautiful." The word was murmured quietly. It was the first word to break the silence after the frenzy of music and emotional outpour on Serena's part.

"Thank you Darien," she whispered. Somehow, they both knew that she wasn't thanking him for the compliment, but for the gift for which she was overjoyed to receive.

"I told you this is your home now. Everything you could possibly ever need or wanted will always be available to you here." He stepped towards her, stopping only when stood right beside her. "Serena, I love you."

She said nothing. Through their bond, she could feel his hurt, his disappointment, and his resignation at her lack of response. She didn't want to say, "well, I don't love you." No, there was enough pain and hurt between them, and she had no wish to add to it.

Suddenly, she felt a warm tingle run down her back, the distinct feeling of pleasure bringing goose bumps to her skin. Startled, she turned around, and was shocked to see that her wings lay raised, spread out, and that Darien was gently stroking them, just as he had done before. She couldn't help but preen under his soft but firm touch, as his fingers glided through the silky white feathers and wrought out even more pleasure.

"But how… I didn't even feel…"

"There is only pain for the first time, as they were being released from confinement."

"I see. But how do I make them go away?"

"Just will them to. Imagine them disappearing from your back, and fading away."

Serena did so, and couldn't help but feel a slight disappointment when they disappeared and the pleasure that Darien's stroking had brought left as well.

The silence stretched between them, long, but not awkward. Instead, for once the troubled couple seemed content to bask in the silence, without any arguments, any sadness. Finally the stillness broke as Darien reached out and grasped Serena's chin between his fingers. He tilted her face up and his own began to descend.

Serena saw it coming, but made no move to stop him. She was much too happy, much too content at the moment and she figured that she could at least give him a kiss in gratitude (since it was oh-so-_hard_ to kiss Darien). She felt his lips press softly against hers and she stood still, waiting for him. He lightly traced the bow of her mouth with the tip of his tongue, and kissed her again, softly, gently.

And that was all he did. Despite the briefness of the kiss, Serena could feel her heart racing just as fast as the last time they'd embraced. She felt the warmness spreading to the lower regions of her body and sluggishness of her limbs.

So there they were, the dark and light pair in the moonlit room, Serena still sitting on the piano bench with her back turned and her head upraised and Darien bent over with his fingers clutching her chin. Their foreheads were the only parts of their body still touching.

"Darien?"

"Hmm?"

"Will you please take me outside? I will go with you."

Silence. "Of course." His grin was wide and true, and Serena all but swooned when those two dimples popped out. "Anything for you love." He stood up straight and held out a hand for her. She placed her hand in his and followed his lead as they left the beautiful room hand in hand. Serena turned her head just one last time to look at the piano that stood flooded in moonlight before the door shut behind her.

* * *

They didn't dress up or change into anything else. Serena was comfortable enough in her narrow jeans, plain white T-shirt, and sneakers. She pulled on a thick warm sweater and wrapped a cashmere scarf around her neck to fight the winter cold outside. When she met Darien at the staircase, he was dressed just as casually as she, in black jeans and a black sweater.

_Surprise, surprise, black. _Serena thought ruefully. But she had to admit, those jeans of his fitted him sinfully well. Especially when he turned around and she saw his- Well, in any case, Darien looked much better than any man had the right to.

"Ready?" Darien asked.

"Yup."

"Okay, now don't let go." Before Serena could ask why, Darien wrapped his arms around her and pressed her firmly against his body. With a sudden tipsy whirl, she found herself no longer at the staircase, but in a garage.

"Until you learn how to do that yourself, we'll have to do it together."

"Okay, but next time, a little bit more warning please," Serena said, pressing a hand to her dizzy head.

"Sorry."

They passed rows and rows of cars, motorcycles, limousines, and all sorts of forms of vehicles and transportation. "What on earth do you possibly need all this for?" Serena asked incredulously. "I mean, you don't even need to drive."

"Well, why not? It's not as if I can just move from here and pop right into my office. People would wonder, then get suspicious, then start snooping around, and I really don't need that."

"I see."

They stepped into a sleek black Aston Martin Vanquish (a.k.a freaking sexy-ass car) and Darien started up the engine, the bright headlights illuminating the garage right before the car roared out.

* * *

Amy was still within Zoicite's grasp, gaping at him in outrage and confusion. First the man _drank her blood_, then he had the nerve to declare that he'd "keep" her… What was going on?

Zoicite was just as confused and shocked as the petite woman he held. Never before in his entire existence had a woman ever been able to read his mind. His brothers, yes, as well as Darien, but a woman? Never! Maybe it was just a fluke.

He looked deep into her eyes and thought, _Amy, your skin feels like the softest silk and your eyes would put sapphires to shame. I would feast upon your body and pay homage to it for the gift of such a delicacy._

Amy blushed and her eyes widened in astonishment as she realized that he was not speaking, but that she was actually hearing his words in her head. "What? I don't understand… How am I… And why can you…"

_So it's true then…_

"What's true? What's going on? What did you do to me?" Amy cried.

"I'm sorry for frightening you love." Zoicite stroked her soft cheek as he hungrily drank in the image of her face. The short cap of blue-black hair, her large navy blue eyes, the pert nose and rosy lips. "But you see, I'm a vampire, and it seems that you are my mate. Mine."

So Amy did what any well-bred woman would do. Her hand went to her forehead and she fainted dead away with a graceful backward arch.

* * *

Serena was excited to be finally leaving the house, even if she was under Darien's watchful eye and leash.

She sat in the plush luxury car, staring out the window as Darien drove down the long driveway towards the gate. She didn't even realize that the car was slowing down until she heard Darien speak.

"Zoicite. And company. What an unexpected surprise," he said drolly.

Zoicite laughed and looked down at the unconscious woman he held in his arms. "Yes, women can't help but fall at my feet. But this time, I don't mind quite so much."

Darien raised a knowing eyebrow. "Congratulations," he said, his voice bland and cool.

Serena was surprised at his iciness, compared to the teasing and seductive man she had witnessed earlier. She looked at the man Darien was talking to, this Zoicite. He was the first person to see in days, and she wondered what he was doing outside the gate.

_Vampire…_

It came to her, not as a big shock, but as if she'd always known, had just somehow sensed it. It was like some sort of twisted gay-dar… Except for vampires. Vamp-dar? She shook her head at the amusing notion, laughing at herself. And it wasn't until then that she saw the sleeping woman that he cradled. Her sharp and newly improved vision focused on the small woman, as she looked familiar.

Zoicite flinched at the sudden burst of power and heat emanating from the car. He instinctively secured Amy protectively in his arms, as she was his first priority to protect, even if it meant great damage towards him. He stared in shock as a small woman with long silver hair stepped out of the car, her pale blue eyes glowing and radiant white wings fully extended from her back.

"Release her." The woman pointed one slender finger towards Amy. Her voice was rich, powerful, beautiful, and nothing like he'd ever heard before. It burned and healed; lyrical yet terrible. "LET GO OF HER!"

He immediately threw up a shield to protect himself and Amy from the blast of power that she released. It initially held, but as the onslaught continued, began to waver.

Zoicite was absolutely astonished. Never before had he seen a woman wield so much power before. He had lived long, longer than most, only coming behind his brothers and Darien in years, but this… His startled eyes flew to Darien, who at this point had also stepped out of the car, his eyes directly trained on the glowing woman.

"Serena, enough," Darien said calmly, even though on the inside his gut churned in fear. She was still far too weak to continue draining herself like this, but he didn't want to startle her into losing concentration and end up hurting herself.

"Tell him to let go of Amy!" Serena yelled.

"No! Never!" Zoicite yelled back furiously. He wouldn't be able to hold much longer. Gathering up as much power and force he could muster, he thrust it back towards the woman, knocking her back. The white light immediately disappeared, seemingly sucked back into the woman's small body.

Serena stumbled back a few steps, her body tired and sore, her mind fuzzy and dizzy. "Oh damn." Her legs buckled underneath her, and before she fell to the ground, Darien was already behind her, catching her, comforting her. She could feel his energy surrounding her, seeping into her exhausted body.

"Now look what you did." Serena's eyes snapped up towards Darien's face upon hearing the eerily cold and deadly voice. _Uh oh… Eyes… Almost red… Fangs… Extending… Wings… Out…_

"Darien, Darien!" Serena tugged on his sweater, trying to catch his attention.

"A moment." A dark aura seemed to surround him, the same blackness that she had seen before.

Zoicite didn't know what to do. For one, Darien was his King and longtime loyal friend. If he commanded it, he would chop off his own head and gladly give it to him. On the other hand, now he had Amy. Dilemma, dilemma.

Darien couldn't think straight, couldn't focus. All he saw was a threat, a person that harmed Serena.

_Zoicite. The four. Mason, Tremain, Pierina, Kinion. __**NO. THREAT! SERENA!**_

The strange buzzing in her ears finally cleared and her smoke hazing her thoughts cleared. Her blue eyes flew between the stranger who held an unconscious Amy and Darien whose predatory stance stood as a barrier between her and Zoicite. She realized that Darien meant to attack the man who, despite her earlier, hasty conclusion, was only trying to protect her friend.

_Plan B! What's Plan B? _She stared in horror as his wings flexed, as if meaning to move any moment. However, the other man made no move to attack Darien, but continued to guard and shield Amy. So she did what first popped to mind. She leaped up high over the car, landing right in front of Darien.

She sank her fangs deep.

**

* * *

A/N: **Gah! Finally, DONE! With this chapter anyways… Haha. See! I haven't abandoned it yet! But fortunately I'm on a "relaxation" trip where all I do is read, sleep, eat, write, or go out to the beautiful lake. Man I'm lovin' it. Anyways, I work on the story at least every other day, so it's always on the mind, don't worry! Thanks for all your reviews and PM's. I read each and every one and each and every one is greatly appreciated. They're my motivation. So please, don't stop! I usually write the most every time I get a new review. :) . So, now, Ch. 8. Here I come!

Btw, you should Google the Aston Martin Vanquish. So hot. Man.


	8. In This Life

**WARNING: **So there's mature stuff again. So cover your eyes kiddies! Haha. Jk. It's not _that_ bad. But it _is _rated 'M'… Take that into consideration. :D

* * *

_**Crescendo**_

Chapter 8: In this Life

Serena had forgotten, but a long time ago, in freshman year of high school, she had once read the novel, The Vampire Lestat. Truly an excellent book, as most of Anne Rice's novels are, Serena had often wondered while reading through the 300 plus pages, how blood gave nourishment. Of course she understood in her practical mindset that blood could _give _life, but she often wondered as a vampire, how it was that vampires _used_ blood. Vampires didn't go to the bathroom, nor did they often bleed excessively, and so, a fourteen year-old Serena often wondered, just exactly _where_ did that blood go? Was the taste something to be desired? What was the concept behind drinking blood? Why couldn't vampires just drink lemonade, or cow blood? You know, do the human race a favor?

Even now, as a fully fledged vampire; that is, a slightly _unique _fully fledged type of vampire, Serena still didn't understand. What she did understand however, was that Darien was delicious.

Quite simple as that really. He was just absolutely, completely, delectably, _delicious_.

Serena liked to consider herself as quite a connoisseur of food, whether it be gourmet, pre-packaged, or fast food. She knew good food when she tasted it and she had to say, Darien sure as hell was some pretty fucking good food.

Quite possibly the best. The most exquisite. The most scrumptious. And she wasn't just talking about his ass either.

So now, with her hands twisted and tangled in Darien's mane of midnight-black silk, her long legs wrapped around his narrow yet muscular waist, and her mouth attached to his throat drinking and feasting for all it was worth, she forgot those silly questions that had once plagued her mind. Darien was… Sex. And Food. And just… Yummy. Yum. Yummy.

But there was a reason why she'd "attacked" him initially, wasn't there? She could've sworn that there was… some kind… of…

Darien's strong hands moved down and firmly grabbed her ass, pressing his groin against her. She moaned as she felt his desire growing and pulsing against her.

…reason. Oh eff that.

Serena pulled once last time at that strong column, and swiped her greedy tongue over the two little pinpricks, the wound closing almost instantly. She savored that few drops on her tongue right before she dragged his mouth to hers. Oh those _lips_. So full, so sinful, so desirable. Their lips and tongues mated together in the way their bodies clearly desired to as well. Darien growled deep in his throat right before he turned their bodies around, slamming Serena's back into the car behind her. She didn't feel any pain, but she heard the faint crack of the car window behind her. Their lips still meshed together, Serena opened open bleary, heavy eye and saw their audience.

Zoicite still stood there, cradling the unconscious Amy carefully within his arms, his eyes averted; looking _anywhere_ but at the writhing couple standing before him. Sure he was grateful enough that the woman who'd attacked him earlier had probably just saved his life, but honestly… Couldn't they get a room for this sort of thing?

Serena was about to push Darien away and send the mystery man on his way, but Darien apparently didn't like the idea of their heated embrace ending, and he was a man who _always _got what he wanted. His talented fingers had already slipped under her shirt and sweater to cup her bra-clad breast, gently squeezing it and molding it against his hand. His lips slipped from hers and moved down to her neck, nuzzling and nipping at that long, slender throat.

She waited until she finally caught Zoicite's attention, grateful that Darien's large body concealed exactly what his hands were doing to her, and mouthed the word '_go_' to him. Her eyes were rapidly beginning to flutter shut but she fought hard to keep her attention focused. "_Amy… Safe…_" She mouthed to him, and made a shooing motion with her hands to urge him to leave, lest Darien forget his current… activities and return to one that caused Serena to deter his attention in the first place. Zoicite caught the hint, and popped right of sight, in that same unsettling way Darien often did.

Now there were no more distractions, and as Darien's hot mouth suckled her neck, Serena was grateful.

His long, deadly fangs slid smoothly in her neck, with the barest of pricks. Sensation burst forth within her body. She could feel herself growing even wetter, hungry for Darien. Welcoming his embrace, _craving_ it. He didn't take as much blood from her as she did from him, but that suited both of them just fine, for as soon as he closed the pinpricks, Serena captured his lips with hers again. She could taste her blood, her essence, on his lips, and that seemed to spur her hunger even more.

Their bodies rubbed and meshed together, Serena's arms still wrapped around Darien's neck, and Darien's hands still wandering up her bare stomach, teasing her smooth skin and now-bare breasts. He captured one rosy nipple with his lips, nibbling and sucking. She moaned harshly, throwing her head back, trying to force him to take more of her. Soon they began to drift down, and tumbled onto the cold, snow covered ground.

Serena's eyes flew open in shock upon feeling the ice burn against her bare back and immediately shrieked, pushing at Darien. His lust-clouded eyes and mind quickly examined the scenario… The snow… The ground… Serena's half naked body…

He flipped their positions, so that he lay flat on the ground, his coat shielding his back with Serena lying flush against him. His hands rubbed up and down her back, trying to warm her up again, and he pulled her tangled shirt and sweater back down. For a few moments, the couple did nothing but lay there, Serena's face flushed and softly panting, Darien's hugging her against him, breathing in the faint scent of peach that permeated from her hair.

It was a blissful moment.

She felt so… Sated. Granted, that heavy throbbing between her legs was really getting to her, but it too, slowly began to fade, leaving behind a Serena that felt as if she were floating upon clouds. Darien's body was warm and comfortable beneath hers, and she wanted to purr like a kitten whenever his hand would stroke up and down her back, just as he had done with her wings. Her face was pressed against Darien's throat and she could feel the rapid pulse of that delicious blood that she had just feasted on only moments before. She pursed her lips and gave him a soft kiss against his neck, as if thanking him for the… treat (insert satisfied smirk).

Darien stroked his beloved's hair, the smooth strands like silk beneath his callused hands. "We may have to get up sometime soon, love. I'm afraid my entire backside is considerably soaked now," he said amusedly, kissing the top of her head.

"Hmm?" Serena stretched contentedly on top of him, and Darien nearly groaned aloud again upon feeling those lushly soft curves rubbing against him.

"The snow, darling. It's melting."

"Snow? Oh… OH!" Serena sprang up, and Darien had the childish urge to pout when she removed that luscious body of hers away from his. "I didn't… I don't know why…" Serena flushed, her face and ears turning a bright red. "I'm sorry about that… I don't know what came over me," she stammered.

"Trust me love, you needn't apologize. But if you truly feel that badly about it, you can make it up to me by… doing it again." He grinned devilishly at her, wrapping his arm around her waist and pulling her close again. Serena felt her face grow even warmer and she twisted her head, looking away.

"Darien! Stop! You're all wet remember?"

"Yes, and so are you," he purred.

Somehow, she got the feeling that he wasn't talking about the snow… Time to change the subject.

With effort, she pushed them apart, keeping them at an appropriate arm's distance. "Who was that man, earlier, holding Amy? The vampire."

"That was Zoicite Mason. One of my trusted men. You may have heard of him, as he works for me and is good friends with Jadeite."

"I… see. What was he doing with Amy? And why did I… attack him like that? So suddenly…"

"I believe that Amy is his recently acquired Mate. It must the season for it," he said blandly.

"Mate? But. But. That's so sudden!" She exclaimed.

"As if it was any slower for us?"

"Oh… Well why was he here anyways?"

"Well why was _she_ here in the first place?"

"Ah. Well. Erm. I may have… That is… She… I was… Um. ." Serena let it all out in one long stream. She couldn't look Darien in the eye.

For a moment there was only silence, that is, until Darien burst out into laughter. "What? Why are you laughing?" She cried.

"Your face… It's so adorable. I love seeing you get flustered like this," he said, his body shaking with laughter.

"Does that mean… You mean, you _knew_? You knew that I had called her?"

"Of course. One doesn't become King if he can't even eavesdrop. And depending on when Mina and Raye check their messages, I guess we can assume they'll come swooping in sometime soon as well, correct?"

"Oh you- you- _Agh._" She hit his arm furiously, only succeeding in making him laugh harder.

"Although your 'punches' don't make it seem so, you are a very powerful woman. You probably attacked Zoicite because you thought Amy was in danger. I have never seen such power… That is, except for me," he added with an arrogant tilt of his head. "Just goes to show how perfect you are for me. We were destined to rule together you and I, side by side."

"Is it because I'm half… Er, because of my _other_ side that I'm so different? I mean, I never knew who my real parents were… But still…"

"Perhaps. But whatever the reason, whatever happens, it doesn't change that you were made for me. We are mates, love. And that's for life." He said it so matter-of-factly that Serena just wanted to scream at him. What if she didn't want it for life? Why didn't she have a choice in this? Why was it so _unfair_?

As if he sensed the change in her mood, he slid his finger underneath her chin and lifted her face up to his. "Don't worry. It's easier than it seems. We'll get through the days, one-by-one. I'll be by your side to protect you and care for you. You can continue to do everything you love-"

"See everyone that I love?" Serena cut in. Darien stared at her beautiful, rebellious face. Her eyes, so innocent yet so strong. A strength that astonished him, fascinated him. He'd known grown men, kings, leaders, that didn't even possess the same strength as her. Yet this small woman, with her blue eyes and silver hair; she managed to topple him, move him in ways that he didn't know possible. Made him love her with a ferocity he didn't know that could exist.

"You will have to make… adjustments. But like I said, I promise it will get easier with time."

She just didn't have it in her at the moment to argue anymore. She was so tired of struggling over the same issue over and over again with him. She sighed. "Will I at least be able to see my friends and family one more time?"

"Of course you will, many times. But a time will come when they notice that you haven't changed, haven't aged… Then it'll be different."

That made her feel at least a little bit better… That she wouldn't have to cut all ties with everyone that she cared about immediately. She'd be able to say goodbye to her adoptive parents, be Raye's maid of honor at her wedding, gossip a little bit more with Mina, have one last concert at Amy's concert hall…

Darien stared at her with an unreadable expression on his face. She stared back, defiantly, daring him to just try and provoke her, but instead, he smiled that loving smile at her, that smile that just made her melt and held out his hand to her.

"Come. We should go now."

"But your clothes! Aren't they still…" Her words drifted off upon seeing the perfectly dry clothes molded against his sinful body. "Oh well, what kind of Vampire King would you be if you couldn't dry your clothes on demand, right?" She said dryly.

"Exactly. And what kind of King would I be if I couldn't even keep my Queen's clothing in shape as well?"

Serena looked down and was surprised to see that her once slightly damp and twisted clothing was now warm, dry, and assembled neatly on her body, as it had been before their… tumble. She put her hand in his and allowed him to lead to her lead her to the passenger side seat door. She was surprised (although at the same time, kind of not really), to see a flashy silver Bugatti Veyron standing where the slick black Vanquish used to be. "So you can change cars in the blink of an eye but you can't fix cracks in a window?"

"Even I have my limits."

"Hm. I'm sure."

"Speaking of which, I didn't hurt you during our little…"

"Tumble? No. I'm fine." More than fine. She could feel her body heating up every time she thought about it.

"That's good. Now, where would you like to go, love?"

She thought about it for a few moments. Where would she like to go as her first time as a vampire-demon in the state of New York? Granted, it was rather late, about eleven o'clock at night… But Serena felt as if she'd just woken up from a really good night's sleep. She had enough energy to do anything.

"Ice skating. I want to go ice skating. And I want cotton candy. With some hot chocolate."

"Done."

* * *

The rink was empty, as it had closed two hours earlier, but Darien wasn't the richest man in NYC for nothing. A few phone calls here and there, and voila. It was miraculously open, without a soul in sight. The lights were glaringly bright against the smooth ice, and the enormous illuminated Christmas tree stood high above the rink.

Serena let out a happy and content sigh as she took a big bite of the fluffy pink cloud in her hands and washed it down with a warm torrent of hot chocolate. Darien squatted in front of her, swiftly tying her skates up tightly.

"I haven't had cotton candy in so long. I forgot how wonderful it tasted." Serena closed her eyes as she savored the taste of the sticky sugar melting on her tongue.

"Well lucky for you, you can no longer get cavities, so enjoy as much as you'd like." Her face at that moment made his heart soar. So pure, so open, so trusting. There was no distrust or angriness between them- only a big cloud of sugar. His entire life that led to this one moment made the suffering so much more worth it.

"Really? Geez, what problems _do_ vampires have?"

"You and I are special cases; you, having mixed blood, and me, being an ancient. However, most vampires are not like us. They cannot control their blood lust as quickly, nor can they stand the sunlight. There are many cases in which a young vampire will go insane, and must be eliminated," Darien explained solemnly. "There are also many rogue vampires, which kill mindlessly and viciously. They not only threaten the human race, but are also risks to the entire vampire race itself."

"Oh. Well then, I guess I was pretty lucky, huh?"

"As was I. Shall we?" Darien stood on the ice, hold his hand out to her.

"Let's." Serena smiled at him, and finally, as she glided out onto the ice, she felt so _free_. Minutes, hours, days of being trapped all disappeared in that single moment. She felt like she could fly to the ends of the earth.

They danced upon the ice, moving, drifting, gliding.

But another came along. Unseen, watchful.

* * *

Serena wondered if it was wrong of her to be enjoying herself so much. I mean, she'd had vowed only a few days before to hate Mr. Totally-_not_-that-mean-and-scary-like-he-thinks-he-is-Darien. Other than his initial asshole-ness (i.e. the kidnapping, the vampire-ing, the possessive-ing thing, the painful wings, etc.) it was really turning out to be not that horrible.

Perhaps she'd just been too melodramatic.

Or maybe Darien was just getting to her.

But it was just that he felt so _good_. He made her feel emotions so deep and profound that it just staggered her. Never before had she felt such freedom and happiness playing the piano before, nor had she ever enjoyed a cloud of cotton candy and ice skating so much. She felt like she was… a kid again. Except with very adult appetites; it wasn't like she could help it! What woman could, with what Darien looked like and _tasted_ like?

She wondered how many other woman had ever tasted Darien's blood, ever kissed those sexy lips and felt a strange twinge.

No, it couldn't be jealousy. She didn't care nearly enough about Darien to be _jealous_… Right?

Darien just so happened to choose that moment to pop up a few feet away from her, holding a fresh cup of steaming hot chocolate ("…with exactly _five_ mini marshmallows. Okay?"). He smiled slowly at her, looking at her as if he wanted to completely devour her… And let her do the same to him.

Oh yea, he was a force to be reckoned with.

"Here you go, Madame- hot chocolate, five marshmallows, heavy on the chocolate, per your order." Serena thought she'd positively melt under the force of his grin. He was sexy enough as a brooder, that classically lined face harshly beautiful in an almost cruel way, yet when he smiled, those navy blue eyes sparkled like sapphires and transformed his face into something equivalent of a Greek god's.

"Darien."

"Mm?"

"How did you know it was me? I mean, how are you so sure that I'm your mate?"

He paused for a moment, looking thoughtful. "When I'd first heard you play the piano, the song that you were playing at the time… It filled me. I'd been so empty for so long but the moment that I heard it…. It just called to me. Then I saw you and you were just… perfect. It felt like as if everything in the world was just… right."

"Which you then soon after chose to ambush me in my dressing room and suck out my tonsils."

"Something like that."

Serena cupped the steaming mug in her hands, enjoying the warm sensation. It was strange, but even while dressed in only jeans, a sweater, and a scarf, she didn't feel all that cold. Another perk of being a vampire, she figured. "So this whole idea of 'forever.' It's kind of… Daunting. How do you live with it? How do you understand it?"

"I don't. I just live my life day by day. Before you know it, an entire decade has gone by, then a century, then a millennia… You just learn to live with it. To adjust. But now, with you, the idea of eternity doesn't seem so lonely at all anymore. In fact, it sounds… wonderful. And for that reason Serena, I'd die for you. You've allowed me to feel more alive and more hopeful than I ever have before."

"You're welcome… I guess."

"Now if you'd only allow me to return the favor. Serena, I just want you to be happy. It's alright if you don't love me, I just want you to stay by my side. That's all I need. In return, I'll give you everything."

"The sun and the moon?" Serena said teasingly.

"If you'd like," his face was dead serious.

He would. She could see it in his eyes. And it terrified her. _My god. What is it like to hold such power in your hands? How did Darien survive for so long without losing his mind?_

"I nearly did. I'd all but lost hope that I'd ever find my mate; find _you_. But now everything's different." He answered her unspoken question aloud.

"I'll say."

"Don't worry angel. I'll never let anything happen to you."

It was just so… Overwhelming. Just a week ago she'd been back in her apartment, sleeping in and living a happy and comfortable life. And now, she was with Darien, who was so ridiculously handsome and wonderful that it just blew her away. _Things like this just don't… _happen_. _

"That's because it's fate. All vampires are fated to find their one true mate someday. It just takes longer for some than others. Or in my case, the longest."

It was happening again. Her thoughts just seemed to slide right into his head. It was like she could just see them sliding in. It didn't unnerve her much as it did before; in fact, she was rather used to it.

"Darien… I can't… I don't know… _Commit_ to anything yet. It's just all so, sudden. And unexpected. But for now, I'll try this whole… _thing_ out. I just can't promise you anything yet." She looked him and looked him straight in the eyes. "But I'll be with you."

Darien took her hand and gently pressed a kiss in the center of her palm. "I can't ask for more."

Serena gave him an impish smile. "Well come on then. I want to race you. I bet you can't beat me skating backwards."

"I don't know about that. I've been ice skating far longer than you."

"Bring it."

And into the late hours of that winter night, their laughter filled the chilled air.

Oh, and Serena won (Darien let her).

* * *

Another pair of eyes watched the couple in the well-lit arena. From a considerably far distance, they watched.

And watched.

And watched.


	9. With All My Heart

**A/N:** "Last Updated: 09-28-07" ... All I can say is SOOORRRYYYY :( Honestly, I have no excuses (well, I kinda do... my life in general has become seriously pretty freaking busy). But HERE IT IS! The next chapter, with some fluff here and there!

But seriously. Can you BELIEVE it? I updated it! I told you I wouldn't abandon it! And I promise I won't ever! :D All that aside, I want to dedicate this long overdue chapter to everyone's encouraging reviews and especially to my awesome new beta, **Kris Black**. Thanks chica! You freaking rock! XD

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything you recognize... i.e. The Beatles' lyrics, Godzilla, etc. Quotes are by David Brin, Friedrich Nietzsche, and Paul Gauguin.

* * *

**Crescendo**

Chapter 9: With All My Heart

* * *

_It is said that power corrupts, but actually it's more true that power attracts the corruptible. The sane are usually attracted by other things than power.

* * *

_

"_Strawberry fields forever…" _ Lita hummed as she played around with an arrangement of flowers in a vase. She loved flowers, and it had always been one of her greatest joys to spend a beautiful day outside, tending to her garden. Then she had died.

Just as it would've for most people, it had put quite the damper on things.

"RAWRR!" The ferocious animalistic growl startled Lita out of her reverie. She looked down and saw a little green monster attached to her leg.

"Oh my! Now what is this? It seems as if the fearsome creature Godzilla has escaped! Whatever shall we do?"

Godzilla blew a raspberry, and then giggled. "It's me mama."

She looked at her daughter's green-smeared face. "Is it now? I could've sworn it was the Godzilla from the movie we watched last night."

"RAWRRRR!"

Lita removed Lapis from her leg and swung her up into her arms, and even with her unnatural vampire strength, she could tell that her little girl was growing.

"Now what are you still doing up? I thought I put you to bed an hour ago!"

"I want goddamn daddy!" she chirped.

"Now Lapis, what did I tell you about saying that word?"

"Daddy word! Daddy word!"

_Nephrite you are so dead, _Lita thought with a grimace. "Right sweetie, so only daddy is allowed to use that word."

"Oh…" She looked crestfallen for a moment, and then she perked up. "Daddy?"

Lita turned around Nephrite standing before them, looking tired, but smiling.

"Daddy!" Lapis began to squirm like mad and when Lita put her down, she ran as fast as her short, chubby legs would carry her towards Nephrite.

Nephrite knelt down, his arms open wide. He looked from his daughter's delighted green face and shot a puzzled look to Lita.

"She got into her finger-paints again," she said dryly.

"I'm Dogzilla!" Lapis crowed.

"I think that's 'Godzilla' sweetie," Nephrite said as he swung her up into his arms. "And why aren't you in bed?"

"I want see daddy!"

"I wanted to see you too, but now, it's time for bed. Godzilla needs lots of rest if she wants to destroy Tokyo tomorrow."

"But daddy!" she whined, using the best puppy-face her green face could muster up.

"No buts young lady! I promise I'll see you tomorrow after sunset."

"Promise?" Her pout faded.

"Cross my heart-" he began.

"-noooooooooo! Don't hope to die!" she wailed.

"Then it doesn't make sense you know," Lita said wryly.

"But it's the _consheep_ mama," Lapis said with a dead serious look on her face.

"Concept dear, concept."

Lapis gave a smooth Gallic shrug which looked entirely like a move that the French-born Zoicite was prone to give.

_We really need to find her a few friends of her age- hell, while I'm at it, __I__ really need to find a few friends of my age._ Which really wasn't an easy feat, considering the fact that she was nearing her 104th birthday. It was difficult to make close friendships, since it was too risky to become too close to a human and most of her kind generally lived rather spread apart.

Vampires were rather territorial creatures, especially when it came to feeding. This worked fine for the King, who used this to his advantage by having the vampires report back the doings of each of their respective areas to him. This kept any hostile vampires or threats to the vampire populace at bay, and allowed for ample feeding. The King had long since forbidden vampires to completely drain their prey- a violation punishable by death.

Lita thought about Raye, the beautiful black-haired woman she had met a few days ago. If Raye was turned (and somehow she severely doubted that she wouldn't be- a full grown vampire as old as Jadeite was sure to have quite a few tricks up his sleeve to convince his reluctant mate), then she sincerely hoped that they got along well. As fun and exciting New York might be, it really got pretty old after 80 years or so.

"Well now, I've finally put the little green monster to bed."

"She's missed you. _We've_ missed you. Is everything good yet? Has Darien returned?"

"I know love. It's been a long week for me too. But it should all be back to normal soon." Together, they sank into the deep plushy couch.

"GAH!" Lita yelped. She leaped up, holding her bottom. She looked down to see what offensive object had poked her right in the left cheek. Nephrite picked up the plastic dragon, upon whose sharp spikes and rigidity tail Lita had so unceremoniously plopped her unsuspecting butt on.

"Not a word!" Lita said pointedly at Nephrite's amused smirk. She carefully examined the sofa before sitting back down.

"I wasn't gonna say a word," he replied with an _almost_ convincing straight face (she hadn't been married to him for more than 70 years for nothing).

Suddenly, quick as a flash, Nephrite loomed over her, his hands on either side of her head, his legs straddling her body, and his lips an inch from hers. "Want me to kiss it and make it all better?"

"You'd better."

* * *

Amy generally tried to live her life according to schedules. Schedules allowed her to be organized, and organization did not leave room for surprises.

This blond Adonis, otherwise known as Zoicite, most definitely fell under the category of a surprise.

Her plans had been perfect. From pre-school to high school, every moment had been set. Piano lessons, extra tutors, ballet, clubs- all this and so much more had been her life during her teens. Then came college, during which her plans were supposed to come to an end with a man, marriage, and kids, all by 23.

And she'd done her best to stick the plan which she had never decided on for herself. Had it been up to her, it wouldn't have ended at college; no college would've just been the beginning. She would've seen the world, lived and breathed all of its music.

But no, it all screeched to a halt at the name Howard Lanson.

But the worst part wasn't meeting him; no the worst part was for believing herself to be in love with him.

It had been too easy to fall for him. He had been handsome, intelligent, charming, and also had an incurable case of infidelity.

She should've learned to be wary of blond men by now. They never seemed to do her any good. After all, look where she was now, in some strange room she didn't recognize.

And look! Now that man Zoicite was walking towards her. The man that bit her! And drank her blood! _Fucking A_! A _vampire_? She bit down a hysterical giggle that was bubbling up in her throat.

The vampire was coming closer.

Without a shirt on.

Oh dear.

* * *

Serena woke up feeling the best she had in days. Her stomach was full, her body well rested; it was just so warm and comfy, she just wanted to snuggle deeper into Darien and keep sleeping.

Darien. Oh damn.

How did she always end up in this situation? She tried to carefully wiggle herself out of the bed so she wouldn't cause a scene, but couldn't seem to budge an inch. Darien's arm was wrapped gently around her waist, yet it kept her as immobile as if it were a steel band, not an arm. She tried one more time without success to escape, but his arm wouldn't budge.

Frustrated (in more ways than one), she threw her head back against the pillow and blew out a breath. She turned her head and watched Darien sleep. Or at least she thought he was; she couldn't feel his breath nor see his chest rise.

He lay on his side, facing her, his face peaceful and still. It was beginning to unnerve her, his lack of breath and heartbeat. Still, his body was warm and it took all her self control not to just bury her face into his hard chest.

As she stared at his perfect face, she wondered how on earth this was all happening to her. Everything just seemed so surreal.

After all, it was only just a few days ago that she'd had a perfectly normal life, with no idea that things like vampires or demons existed. Now she was half vampire, half D-word (she absolutely _refused_ to refer to herself as a – well, you know what), she had wings, and she was _married_. To a vampire king of all people.

Jeez. It was like a bad B-movie.

Still, Serena had to admit, it was getting harder to stay angry. She never could keep a grudge (Mina always said that she was like a burnt marshmallow when angry – bitter and tough on the outside, but still too soft and sweet on the inside).

But it was just so _hard_ to stay mad! First with the piano, then with last night…

He was making it too easy to fall for him.

Damn it! But what sane, red-blooded women could resist? _It's a perfectly normal reaction_, Serena argued with herself. _Anyone else would feel the same._

It was a weak argument she knew, considering her initial vehement hatred and resentment, but at this point, she had to admit, however grudgingly, that she was falling for him.

He treated her as if she were the most precious gift to mankind, and loved her just for simply existing. Not quite just a love at first sight, but more like… love at the sound of her laughter, love at her every smile, love of holding her in his arms, love of the perfect fit of her body against his, love for her kiss, and _love_. Just love for _her_.

Sometimes it rather frightened her. No, damn well _terrified_ her. The intensity of his feelings that were being directed towards were just completely mind blowing.

Oh sure, she'd had men "love" her before. They had loved her face and written odes about it, they swooned over her music and cried about it, they saw the steadily accumulated wealth she'd obtained and reached for it...

Serena prided herself on being a practical person, not overly romantic like her cousin Mina. Mina, who had no qualms about zipping across the ocean, determined to save the world. Falling in love with men only to be later heartbroken, only to once again fall in love.

_Except, _Serena thought drowsily, _she's been pretty down for the past year. _The next time Darien took her out, she'd demand to be taken to Mina. She was the only family Serena had left, and was closer than a sister. Along with Amy and Raye, they were probably getting worried. But for now she'd sleep for just a little longer.

* * *

Eyes still closed, Darien smiled as he felt Serena shift her small, soft body against his. Her head was fast asleep on his arm (it was times like this Darien was grateful he wasn't human - if he was, his arm would probably be asleep by now and burning like hell) and one arm was thrown over his waist, the other tucked under her chin.

He pulled her listless body closer against his, hugging her to him and did something he hadn't done in nearly three thousand years.

"_Thank you God._"

* * *

She considered swooning. Then she could pretend to be unconscious and buy some time, at least until she came up with a plan to implement.

_Gah! Too late!_ He was already standing before her at the foot of the bed. Doing her best to mask her seriously growing panic, she said in her most casual voice, "So, you're a vampire? How's that been going for you?"

She had to try really, really hard not to look at piece of sculpted masterpiece also known as Zoicite's Naked Chest. But it was really hard.

Like, really. Speaking of hard... _Ohhhh, bad train of thought there..._

He didn't say anything for a few moments. She could tell that she had caught him off guard with her off-hand, casually placed comment. And then he smiled.

Oh, that _smile_.

Amy heard of the phrase "killer smile" before, but this was the first time she'd ever been the recipient of that deadly curve of the lips. His teeth were straight and white, and Amy briefly had to wonder if most dentists were actually vampires... Because then that would explain a lot about about Dr. Schlesinger and his evil, evil drill.

"You know, lately it's been pretty slow, but going. In any case, I have a feeling that things are going to be a lot more... fun from now on."

"Fun?" Amy squeaked.

"Yeah. Fun." He stared at her for a few moments, his head cocked to the side as if pondering something deeply. Then he shrugged and began to unbutton his jeans.

"W-what are you _doing_?" Amy cried. She tried to keep her eyes from following the movement of his hands but it was if she were hypnotized. He was wearing a pair of black briefs and... _good lord_. That had to be a sock or something.

Zoicited snorted and smirked, but didn't say anything. "I'm going to sleep. It is my bed after all. And I'm tired."

"But- You- This isn't-" she stammered, her mind racing in a dizzy rush of thoughts and... _images_.

Insert smirk.

"Fine!" Amy threw off the covers and swung her legs over the edge of the bed, only to discover to her dismay that all she wore was the pale blue slip she had underneath her dress suit. She quickly dove under the covers again and pulled the dark red coverlet over her head. "Whesh mhpf cooths?" Her muffled voice emerged from beneath the sea of pillows.

"Hm?"

Amy poked just her head from beneath the covers. She took a deep breath and said as calmly as possible, "Where did you put my clothes?"

He looked at her as if she were crazy. "In the closet of course, my dear. Where else would your clothing be?"

He was right; looking to the right of the bed she saw the open closet and her clothing hanging neatly inside.

Zoicite wanted to laugh aloud at the quick and deadly glare she threw at him, right before she caught herself and masked it with her usual calm and serene face. She looked even smaller than she already was, dwarfed by the huge and heavy blankets, only her head reveal to him. She thought to hide herself from him, but he'd already seen it all.

And what a neat, tidy, and _delicious_ looking package it was.

Her face was small and angular, and almost pixie like with her large eyes and short inky bob. She was of too small a stature to be ripe with curves, but was instead blessed with legs that made up for most of her height and a soft, delicate roundness that just begged to be stroked.

Amy didn't like the way he was staring. "Okay, then go ahead and sleep. I'm going to leave. Good night!" she chirped, as she carefully slid from the bed, making sure the blanket covered her body fully. Both her feet had just barely touched the ground before she felt the blanket being yanked back. She tripped over the tangle of blanket around her legs and fell backwards, following the momentum of the blanket. Right back into to bed.

_How convenient._

Still bundled tightly, Zoicite hugged the Amy Burrito and flung his leg over her, wrapping his arms around her. "You can't leave yet!" he implored dramatically. "I can't find my body pillow, so you'll just have to do the job for now until I find it."

"Let. Me. Go!" The Amy Burrito wriggled and squirmed about, trying desperately to at least free her arms from the constraint of the blankets, but with Zoicite hugging her and her arms and legs firmly entrapped within the fabric, she was stuck. She let out a very unladylike huff of annoyance and finally stopped wriggling about. It was getting hot under the thick blanket, and all the moving around wasn't helping.

And neither was Zoicite.

"Well, as amusing as that was, it's almost daybreak and I'm getting pretty darned tired myself. So how about we take a short nap, hm my dear?" He gazed into Amy's navy blue eyes innocently, as if he hadn't just kidnapped her and wasn't holding her prisoner in a jail of blankets.

As much as she wanted to retain her (ladylike) indignant hostility, her curiosity got the best of her and she asked, "So vampires really are affected by the sunlight? What about all those other myths having to do with garlic, holy water, and stakes and so on?"

He snuggled her closer and snuck a hand inside the covers (_What the? Where the hell did that come from?) _to wrap around her back. "Vampires do get burned under the sunlight. For newborn vampires, the young ones, direct sunlight is fatal and even when there's an overcast it can cause severe burns. They take quite a long time to heal, as opposed to most injuries, which is why vamps try to avoid it all costs. However, the older you get, the more powerful you are and therefore the more immune you get to the sun."

"How about you? How old are you?"

"Now that's a question I'm rather sensitive about, so we'll save that for our second date."

Amy fought the urge to pout childishly. "Well then, how much sunlight can you stand?"

"Like most vampires, I tend to get tired when the sun rises. Fortunately, I don't immediately pass out as most young vampires are prone to do as soon as the sun comes up. Direct sunlight still burns like hell, but I hold up pretty well under cloudy and rainy days."

"Oh." Amy wondered again how old he was. He looked about 30 or so, but if vampires really _were_ immortal... Then maybe... A hundred or so? Maybe a hundred and fifty years?

Zoicite smirked again, but Amy was too absorbed in her thinking to notice. "So you're taking this pretty well; I mean, most people get pretty freaked out by the whole vampy thing."

She looked up at him again, dark blue facing against bottle green. He didn't show it, but he was rather taken aback by the calmness of her eyes. It was like staring into an calm, endless ocean that stretch on forever, without a single turbulent wave to interrupt.

"Well, other than the part where you drank my blood and I passed out and woke up here in my underwear and then got stuck in these blankets because you wouldn't let me go..." she took a moment to breathe. "Other than that, you've been kinda... nice," she said, her big eyes serious.

He'd been called a monster, a demon, freak, and even sexy as hell, but never anything like _nice_. Nice. He was a nice person.

Yeah. That felt kind of good.

He swiftly changed his position, his legs straddling hers and his arms on either side of her head. "Well don't start counting your blessings yet, _cherie_. I'm not always this nice," he growled, his lips hovering an inch above her neck.

Strange, but despite the dangerous tone in his voice and his suggestive position, Amy was thinking more about his slight French accent, rather those flashing fangs currently gliding along the smooth expanse of her neck. "No, maybe not, but you're not a monster either. If you were going to hurt me, you could've already done so. And besides-" She let a small moan when he nipped her gently. " -you hung my clothes up," she finished breathily.

Those eyes, so serious, so calm; he felt as if they stroked him, soothing his body, his heart.

Amy felt him freeze above her, his forehead resting on her shoulder. "Zoicite? When will you let me go?" she asked tentatively. He lifted his head and smiled at her, not one of his predatory or lady-killer smiles, but a real smile- one where his eyes crinkled slightly in the corners and the dimple in his left cheek popped out.

_Oh... Dreamy..._ The thought slipped out before she caught herself.

"Just sleep for now." Amy agreed silently. As dangerous as it was to fall asleep defenseless in a stranger's home, she felt... safe. And she was beginning to feel increasingly drowsy. Besides, he'd already proved he wouldn't hurt her while asleep, and somehow, everything was just _right_. "-and I promise to explain everything tomorrow night. For now, please, just stay with me."

It was such a simple request, and Amy couldn't fight that slightly desperate but hopeful question.

"Okay."

Zoicite slept without dreams for the first time in seven-hundred and eighty years.

Amy felt content with her life for the first time in twenty-five years.

* * *

"Who is she?"

"We are quite certain she is Serena Lennox, the pianist. She was reported missing a few days ago."

"She is beautiful."

"Yes, and she is also quite famous, especially in the music industry."

"When were the pictures taken?"

"Just last night. One of our people happened to see them unexpectedly. Since it was Shields, we wanted to notify you right away."

"You did well to do so." Cold eyes took in the glossy pictures. "You did very well."

He shivered at the look in eyes of man seated before him. They just weren't the eyes of someone… sane. He'd dealt with the worst of the worst, some of the darkest people that many prayed to never meet. But still… No matter how evil or twisted, they always had the empty eyes of a doll – calculating, but sane.

These silver eyes swirled with something unidentifiable, but something very closely akin to insanity. At least with calculation one could predict danger, but with one as unstable as this… He was going to just finish this job as soon as possible, and get the hell out of there, before his insanity consumed them both.

"Stay on this. I want you to continue following Ms. Lennox and her doings. Update me daily."

"Yes sir."

Silvers eyes like shards of ice glimmered in the dark. He stroked one long, pale finger over the glossy finish of the photo. "Hm... Serena..."

So the snake slithered.

_

* * *

Be careful when you fight the monsters, lest you become one._

_

* * *

Life being what it is, one dreams of revenge._


	10. Our Souls Stay Bound

**A/N**: CAN YOU BELIEVE IT? I'm alliiiiveeeeeee. Seems like I dropped off the face of the universe, didn't it? Nope, just being a terrible updater and all-around failure. But here's the chapter, finally :) Btw, I seriously love you all for sticking with me for this long… and especially for those of you who have been reviewing even though I haven't updated in what… two years? I do it all for you lovelies!

Hope this chapter answers some questions. I'm sorry to say it IS something of a filler, but it's necessary for the continuation of the story. Enjoy! :)

* * *

_**Crescendo**_

Chapter 10: Our Souls Stay Bound

When Serena finally felt the clutches of sleep release her, as opposed to seeing the sun high in the sky like before, the sky was streaked pink and purple as the sun was setting far behind the vast expanse of trees.

As usual, it took her a few moments to fully awaken, and when she did, she immediately realized that Darien was no longer in bed. It amazed her that she'd even noticed, but what bothered her was that she even cared.

As much as she didn't want to admit it, she liked strength and security she felt in his arms. She liked how he would hold her in his arms, even while asleep.

She liked him. Yeah. She really did.

She wouldn't deny it anymore. It was hard enough to deny that she was falling in love with him, so she wouldn't deny that she at least liked him.

It wasn't a strange occurrence, her liking someone. After all, she'd been in love before. Before all... this, she'd gone on dates with men, fancied herself in love with two, slept with one, and had her heartbroken by another. Even still, her "love" for those men paled in comparison with her "like" for Darien.

Had it been any other situation, i.e. he was human, she was human, he was just a normal man, she had _remained_ just a normal woman - she'd probably still feel the same about him. Like, love, lust; whatever it was, it was just the vampire/demon/non-human/some-really-weird-stuff-going-on factor that made things so much more difficult.

But really, were things that difficult?

One thing was for sure, Darien could've at least handled their initial meeting with a little more finesse.

_But I doubt that I would've been any more cooperative. _

Stretching, Serena slid out of the raised bed, and padded over to the bathroom. She took a long, luxurious bath in the wide, sunken Jacuzzi tub and when she finished and stepped back into the room, the sun had already set and the stars were out playing.

Slipping into a pair of black skinny jeans, one of Darien's sweaters (Serena had to resist the urge to rub her face against the soft material) and a pair of flats, she headed out.

Serena was determined to go and see her friends today (as well as to make sure Amy was okay in the hands of Zoicite) and reassure them of her safety. Darien was still nowhere to be seen, which was strange, considering his rather unnerving habit of popping up out of nowhere.

She headed down the sweeping stairs down to the main foyer, intending to head for the garage when she thought, _But where the heck was the garage again?_

The last time, Darien had done the Harry Potter pop-in-and-out thing. So how the hell was she supposed to find it?

Unexpectedly, she felt her back tingle and got the strange feeling that someone was watching. She whirled around and saw back at the foot of the stairs a man and a woman. Again, as before, somehow she just _knew _it...

Vampires.

She could tell the man was powerful, probably more powerful than Zoicite. She could sense the tightly reigned control of his powerful aura. Tall, with dark brown hair and eerie metallic silver eyes, he looked to be around thirty-five or so. The woman beside him was absolutely gorgeous, with the height of a model and thick, lushly waving chestnut hair. She didn't feel as threatening to Serena as the man, but she could tell that the woman still held some power, nonetheless.

The man spoke first. "Good evening. My name is Nephrite Tremain, and-"

"I'm Lita! Listen, I know you're probably weirded out a bit right now, considering that like, 'Woah, one moment it was empty, and now, people! Poof! Out of nowhere!' and all that stuff, but don't worry, we're friends of his Majesty."

She didn't, but Serena really wanted to snort at that "his Majesty" bit.

"As I was saying, I am Nephrite, one of Darien's advisers. This is my Mate, Lita. Unfortunately, Darien had to leave for a short time on some business, so he contacted us to come help you with anything you may need."

_And/or to probably make sure I don't run away_, Serena thought dryly. "Um, thanks. Then do you think you could tell me where the garage is? I'd like to drive to city so that my family knows I'm okay."

Nephrite remained silent, his face a stone mask.

"Errrr about that honey..." Lita began.

"Lemme guess, I'm not allowed to leave and you guys are here to make sure of that?" Like him? She _liked_ him? She could've cheerfully _murdered_ him.

"Well no, you can leave, it's just that-"

"Darien wanted us to tell you that you are allowed to leave the premises at any time that you wish, it's just that he _strongly_ advises and wishes for you to wait for him."

"Well I'm going, and you can tell _His Majesty_ that I could really care less what-"

"He said he wishes for you to wait, for he too, would like to meet and address your family and friends. Together." Nephrite finished.

_Oh. Well when he put it that way... _All the bluster deflated out of Serena. "Fine..." She grumbled. "I'll wait." She plopped down on the bottom step with a petulant "_hmph_". "Do you know what time he'll probably be back?"

"He said it wouldn't take too long, so probably another hour or two at the most. Meanwhile, here." Lita thrust forward a small box. "A welcome-to-the-neighborhood gift."

Serena jumped up and took the box, her enhanced sense of smell picking up the luscious aroma of chocolate, caramel, and vanilla.

"It's yellow cake with caramel swirls and chocolate icing. I don't know what's your favorite yet so I decided to go with a general crowd pleaser."

She had already started salivating at the word 'yellow cake'. "Thanks! It smells absolutely mind-bogglingly delicious. Would you like to have some with me?" she asked politely, remembering her manners. Goodness, if her mother (God bless her soul) had seen the way she'd been acting for the past few days, carrying on and on and yelling like a shrew... Well, yeah...

Lita's happy smile was genuine, and her eyes sparkled in excitement. "Love to. Nephrite? Coming?" Her voice sounded inviting but her eyes said suggested otherwise.

_Go away! Let me make a new friend. I think you kind of scare her._

_**But I want some cake too!**_

_I made some cupcakes with the leftover batter. Go eat those at home._

_**I love you.**_

_Psh. You'd better._

Nephrite flashed a quick grin at Lita, there and gone so fast that Serena thought she imagined it. "As much as I'd love to, I'm afraid I must attend to some other... urgent matters to attend to. Your Highness, it was an honor to meet you." He swept into an impressive low bow before disappearing.

Still too stunned at the "Your Highness", all Serena could manage was a confused, "uh huh?" before Lita started tugging her along.

"Follow me; the kitchen's this way."

_Well duh, Serena. If Darien's the King, and you guys are "married", then basically... Yea. What the fuck? Queen?_

"... so if you go that way it'll lead down to the gym. But if you turn right over there you'll end up hitting the pantry... Although I personally think it's more like a grocery store."

"I'm sorry, what?" Serena was feeling a tad overwhelmed by number one, the fact that she was a "queen" (_I think_...), number two, the smell of the cake, and number three, the numerous twists and turns they were taking just to reach the damn kitchen.

Lita laughed. "Never mind. I'll just have to go rummage up a map for you somewhere. I'm sure Mrs. Montgomery has one."

"Mrs. Montgomery?"

"The head housekeeper. She, along with Sir, the head butler, basically oversee the household. Sir and Mrs. Montgomery are actually married, but for some reason completely beyond me, everyone calls him Sir."

"I hadn't even realized that there were other people here..." Serena said faintly. "How come I never saw anyone?"

Lita looked at her as if she were crazy. "Are you kidding? Any sane vampire split from here within the first few minutes of your arrival. The combination of your power as well as the King's... It was much too overwhelming for many of us to handle. For such a small thing, you sure hold quite a bit of lethal power."

"Uh... Thanks."

"Don't take it the wrong way, I mean the King's mate would have to be quite powerful in order to hold her own. That's only fair."

"What do you mean, 'fair'?"

Lita gave her a puzzled look. "Don't tell me that - oh Darien, that idiot!" For the first time, Lita referred to Darien as something other than "the King" or "His Majesty." It made Serena smile a bit.

"Lemme guess, he basically kidnapped you, knocked you out, terrified you with his big-bad-I'm-a-super-crazy-powerful-vampire-you-better-obey attitude, turned you into a vampire, and voila! We're mates!" She fixed a steely-eyed glare in Serena's direction. "That's basically what happened isn't it?"

Well, save for the parts where she basically all but melted in his arms, and tried to jump his bones on more than one occasion, that sounded about right. Serena gave a meek nod and tried not to cower before Lita's fuming and impressive stature.

"OH OF COURSE IT IS!" She exploded. "I swear to all that's holy, these men have peanuts for brains! Don't they _know_ that humans have to treated _carefully? _Jeezus! After living all these years you'd think they'd learn something by now..." Lita continued to mutter unpleasant things under her breath.

"Uh... Cake?" Serena was seriously going to break down any moment and starting begging on her knees.

"Oh, uh, yea. Sorry about that. The kitchen's right here."

Serena settled herself behind the gleaming marble counter on one of the raised stools as Lita busied herself around the huge, impressive kitchen. Setting down two plates of cake along with some coffee, she continued. "Anyways, before I got a bit, *ahem*, carried away, I was saying that the whole idea of 'mates' is a rather intricate thing. You have to understand, vampires, no matter how old or powerful they are, get only one chance at finding that one other being that fits them, mind, body, and soul. I know it all sounds pretty ridiculous and corny, but it's true. For many vampires who can't bear the thought of living eternity alone, this is their one saving grace - the hope that there is or will be someone who is your perfect partner in every way."

"But can't vampires take lovers? And what about those who have to wait?"

"Of course they can, but only vampires who are mated can take blood from each other. Other than that, we must feed strictly on human or animal blood. Otherwise, the blood of a vampire to another vampire is like poison."

"Note to self: avoid vampire blood," Serena muttered under her breath, conveniently forgetting one particular vampire whose blood she had thoroughly enjoyed.

"While some vampires are fortunate enough to find their mates within their first few years, some such as the King, have waited for centuries. Frankly speaking, no one thought he was going to last this long. No one ever has. Most give up at least after five centuries or so…"

"Give up?"

"Suicide."

The word hung between them for a few heavy moments. "But I thought vampires were immortal. How..."

"Some go on a insane rampage, bleeding other vampires dry until the poison consumes their body. Others just step outside and catch the full force of the sun's rays. And some just drive a stake into their own hearts."

"So that's not a myth? The wooden-stake-in-heart thing?"

"Who _wouldn't _die after having something driven into their heart?"

"Well, yeah..."

"And actually it doesn't have to be wood. Basically there are four ways to kill a vampire. Listen up carefully now," Lita said in her best teacher voice. "First, by direct sunlight, although how long it takes varies depending on how powerful one is."

Serena almost blurted out the fact that she could stand the sunlight, but stopped herself. She really didn't want to have to tell others about her... demonic side.

"Second, blood poisoning. Again, the younger you are, the more effective the poison is. Some will die with just a sip, others can fully drain up to four or five vampires. Third, decapitation. Not much to be said about that. Decapitation is decapitation."

"Gotcha. Don't get my head chopped off."

"And finally, being staked. Mind you, if the stake is removed immediately after, there is some chance of healing, but it's extremely rare."

"What happens when vampires get drained? It doesn't kill them?"

"No, but it does pretty much fully incapacitates them. Think of it this way: for us, blood is strength and power, so without blood, we become powerless; even weaker than humans, for it becomes almost impossible to move."

"I see." So vampires weren't as almighty and powerful as she thought. With the way Darien was behaving, she thought they were pretty much invinc-

"However this is pretty much irrelevant when applied to his Majesty. As an Ancient, he is one of the most powerful beings on earth. I don't even know how old he is; for that matter, neither does Nephrite, and they're close friends." Lita gave a little shudder. "I don't ever want to see the full extent of his powers..."

Great. Just freaking great. No wonder he was so flippin' arrogant. _One of the most powerful beings on earth._ And she was married to him.

So much for normalcy.

Lita misinterpreted the stricken look on Serena's face. "Well don't worry, you don't have to be afraid of him," she hurried. "The thing is, as his mate, you share not only hearts, but mind and soul as well. You may not be used to it yet, but you'll soon learn all the ways in which you're connected. This also means that his power flows through you, and yours through him. Do you understand?"

Well yeah, she understood. But that didn't mean it made it any less mind boggling. She sighed. "Yeah, I guess..."

"Well now! Don't look so glum! It won't be too bad once you get used to it. Besides, at least you won't be alone through it all." Lita looked away, eyes downcast. "Before I met Nephrite, I uh, was in a pretty bad state. No one was there to explain it all to me and it was all just... Yeah... It was bad. But fortunately we met not ten years after I was turned. He saved my life."

"How did you meet?"

"Let's just say I was something of a mindless, human-chomping animal and without thinking, chose Nephrite as my next dinner. Once I sank my fangs in I figured out he was a vampire... Needless to say we were both pretty surprised that I didn't immediately die from blood poisoning."

"How... Romantic."

"Isn't it just?" She gave a wistful sigh. "He helped me clean up my act soon after. It took awhile, but eventually I returned to myself. And now look! I get to bake, I have a beautiful daughter, a wonderful husband and a place to call home. It's like a fucking Disney movie." She blushed. "Excuse my language. I try not to slip up too much these days. Lapis has the ears of a bat. No pun intended."

Now _that_ really caught her attention. "You've got to be kidding me. The bat thing is true?"

Lita chewed on her lip while thinking. "Hm this is a bit complicated. But lemme try and explain: no, not all vampires can turn into bats; just a few. The whole bat thing just got blown out of proportion with books and movies and such. But honestly, if you could shapeshift into an animal, who the hell would choose a bat? Ridiculous, right? Anyways, vampires have the ability to change into only one kind of animal at any given time. It is the "beastly" nature of the vampire I suppose."

"So then how does a vampire choose what animal? Is just random choice?"

"No, it's more of a favorite. Think of it this way - didn't you have a favorite animal that you were just fascinated with as a child? It was your favorite stuffed animal, or the first thing you'd choose to see at a zoo. Mine for example, is a cat." She screwed up her nose in distaste. "I have to admit though, I was a bit disappointed to discover that my animal form was a little house cat, especially compared to some of the more impressive forms I've seen."

Serena thought about what Lita was saying. A favorite animal? She had so many! Dogs, cats, dolphins, pandas, koalas - oh god, what if she turned into some sluggish koala?

"Anyways, don't worry too much about it. It'll come to you eventually. As of now, you're very young but you'll being learning new things about yourself everyday."

What else could there possibly be? She learned she was part demon, part vampire, had wings, can't die, married to a king... _God I hope there's nothing else._ "Yea, I guess... Thanks for talking me through all this by the way - I've been at a complete loss for the past few days. You've brought a sense of normalcy back into my life, not to mention some delicious cake."

"Don't mention it - I know how you feel. But don't worry, you get the hang of it eventually. Meanwhile, you have Darien and all 300,000 of your subjects to turn to." She winked playfully at the mention of 'subjects'.

"THREE HUNDRED THOUSAND? Holy honkin' trucks that's a lot of vamps."

"Not really, when you compare it to the size of the world - it's not even the population of a big city. Besides, we all live pretty spread apart, so vampires rarely run into one another."

_Three hundred thousand __**subjects**__._ Ew. What a shuddering thought. "So do you have wings too?"

"What?" Lita looked startled at the question.

"Wings. Or does just have to do with the whole inner-animal thing?"

"I don't really understand. Where did you get the idea that vampires have wings?"

"Um. Darien. He has a really huge set of black feathery wings. Isn't that a vampire thing too?"

Lita sucked in a harsh breath. "You _saw_ them? You saw his majesty's wings?" She looked in shock and in awe at the same time.

"Well, yea." Maybe this wouldn't be the best time to mention her own wings. Apparently it wasn't a normal "vampire thing".

"That's… That's really amazing. I don't know _anyone_ who's ever seen them… Not even Nephrite… I mean there have been rumors, but no one really ever believes them…" Lita was muttering to herself, clearly still shocked.

"Soooo then I'm assuming it's not a normal thing?"

"Well, no, not really. It's rumored that only really, really powerful beings have wings. Sure, there are some vampires whose animal alter-egos are birds, but to have wings on your whole self…" Her voice trailed off, as she became lost in her thoughts. "From what I understand, the wings are not wings in the normal sense - after all, what use would a vampire have for wings when they could easily fly without them? These wings instead, are basically the physical manifestation of the individual's power. But these individuals are incredibly rare. The degree of power they hold… They are evident in the wings, almost as if it's too much for the body to hold."

"Wow. That's… Something."

"No kidding. If you don't mind me asking, when did you see them?"

"Uh not to long ago. He was, ah, angry. We got into a fight." Serena finished lamely. It seemed like these wings were a big deal, and it was rather embarrassing to explain how a fight was the reason for Darien's fury.

"Oh."

"Yeah…"

Lita broke the ensuing silence first. "Well, nice to know _someone_ can make His Majesty show some real emotions," she joked lightly.

"That's one way to look at it," Serena replied with a wry grin. "By the way, there's something else that I've been wondering about… something very important to me." Serena hesitated. She feared the answer, but she simply had to know. _Had _to. "About having kids… I mean I don't know if I would even _want _to have kids with Darien, considering the fact that I'm supposed to be mad at him and hate him and all that but if want to have kids I need to know now so I can prepare myself with the idea of never having a child of my own and I mean, I don't know if Darien even wants a kid and I don't know why I'm even considering making him the father of my children but I mean with this whole weird situation and all I just figured…" She trailed off, forcing herself to stop rambling like a crazy person. She took a deep breath and continued, "What I mean to ask is - will I still be able to have children?"

The serious look on Lita's face was making Serena nervous. "Look, I'm not going to lie to you about this. The thing is, it _is _possible, but it's very rare for a vampire couple to conceive." Then she smiled. "But don't worry, most mated pairs will eventually conceive at least one child in their lifetime together. As for Nephrite and I, we got lucky - I conceived a little after my 6th decade with Nephrite. I've heard of couples waiting for _centuries_."

"You have a child? How old is he? She?"

"She. Lapis." Lita smiled the soft smile that only a mother could have, full of adoration and exasperation at the same. "She just turned four, and is already quite the beautiful little terror."

"Is she…"

"Yes, she is a vampire as well. But she still just a child in many ways - she is still much more vulnerable than an adult vampire, even a newly-turned one, nor does she have full control of her abilities quite yet. She'll also age at a normal rate, until she reaches her "prime" - which can be in her twenties, thirties, or even forties. Whichever age her body is at its peak in health, energy, and strength; somehow the body just knows and will physically stop aging at that time."

Something inside of her loosened, like the fist around her heart had finally opened. It hadn't been a concern that she had voiced aloud until now, because she had been terrified to hear the answer. But now that she knew… She could breathe. Could hope.

A child. Her own flesh and blood, to hold in her arms. A _vampire_ child, but it seemed inconsequential at this point. After all, that just meant that she wouldn't have to see her children die, wouldn't have to suffer the pain of watching them grow old and fade away… She suppressed a shiver at the thought. _That would be the worst sort of torture I could possibly imagine. Darien's baby…_ The thought brought to mind a picture of a dark haired cherub, with Darien's midnight black hair and her blue eyes.

_What?_ _What am I thinking? Having kids with Darien… I'm seriously losing my mind._ She frowned and asked Lita hesitatingly, "Well that's a huge relief to hear, but… Is it only _mated_ pairs who can have children? I mean, could a single vampire just find a, I dunno, baby daddy?"

Lita laughed, a big, booming sound that somehow suited her perfectly. "A baby daddy?" She snorted and snickered at the term before continuing. "Well I suppose so, but I've never heard of a vampire who _wasn't_ mated being patient enough to wait decades in order to become pregnant. It takes a deep sense of commitment and connection - something you can usually only find with a mate. But that's not something you have to worry about anyways. After all, you have His Majesty, and you two will have-" She stopped suddenly, and carefully looked at Serena, who tried her best not to squirm under her intense examination.

Feeling inexplicably ashamed, Serena was the first to break eye contact and look away, her previous appetite for the cake vanishing. She had nothing to feel bad about… Right? _It's not as if I asked for this… relationship or whatever. So theoretically if I wanted to be with someone else, that wouldn't be cheating… I think. Right? God I don't even know…_

Lita gently covered Serena's hand with her own. Looking up, she saw that Lita's face expressed a combination of sympathy and understanding. "Look, I know this is hard right now, and I'm sure Darien didn't make it any easier for you, but you could just try and do one thing?"

"What?" Serena whispered.

"Just give it time. A year, a few months, or even a few more weeks. Just give him a chance, and try to be patient with him." She smiled mischievously. "Despite their oh-so-mighty powers and centuries of life, one thing doesn't change for most men. Boys are dumb!" Serena had to laugh at that. It was hard to think of Darien as anything other than one-hundred percent, grade-A man.

"And that's why I'm asking you to be patient. 'Cause like all boys, he'll say stupid things, and _do_ even more stupid things. But it's all to get the attention of the girl he likes. And as the superior sex-" Serena laughed again at Lita's imperious tone of voice. "-we need to be magnanimous enough to overlook their stupidity and guide them in the right direction."

_Time_. Well she certainly had all the time in the world now, didn't she? It was a thought that might've depressed her earlier, having this life and all its changes forced upon her, but now… It didn't seem quite as painful to think about anymore.

She nodded. "I think I could do that."

"Good. Now I don't know about you, but I've been eyeing the cake throughout this entire conversation. Shall we?"

"You go on ahead and help yourself first. I'll wait until Darien comes home."


End file.
